


We Raise Our Cups

by butterfly_wings



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Dangan Ronpa: Another Episode, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: F/F, Hadestown AU, M/M, Makoto is very sad in this and im very sorry, This Is Really For Me, and asahina and ogami are fates. there is no third one oops, kirigiri is hermes, komaru is orpheus, makoto is persephone, sakuhina is only in the background, self-indulgent tbh, togami is hades, touko is eurydice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:33:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 25,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23472520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/butterfly_wings/pseuds/butterfly_wings
Summary: In a world where spring has gone, Naegi Komaru has been blessed with song. Her goal? To convince Togami, king of the mines, to let his husband, Makoto, the prince of spring, restore the world's balance.And then she meets Touko.
Relationships: Asahina Aoi/Ogami Sakura, Fukawa Touko/Naegi Komaru, Naegi Makoto/Togami Byakuya
Comments: 15
Kudos: 83





	1. Road to Hell (Komaru)

**Author's Note:**

> hello! this is a very self-indulgent hadestown au, or, a great-depression/post-apocalyptic retelling of orpheus and eurydice. so it's gonna be a little sad. 
> 
> disclaimer: I don't own anything

Once upon a time, there was a railroad line. Don’t ask where, brother, don’t ask why. It was the road to hell. 

It was hard times. 

Naegi Komaru has a mission: compose the best song in existence, then perform it for Togami and convince him to bring back summer. She knows she is capable of it. Even now, unfinished, the song has the power to convince trees to grow a little taller, for the sun to shine a little brighter, for the flowers to stand a little straighter. 

But it has to be finished first. Right now, the song soothes their desolate world, but there is little that the song can do once it’s over. When Komaru stops singing, the world loses the luster. Komaru knows she can’t keep singing forever. 

When Komaru had first sang it to her friend Kirigiri, Kirigiri had gasped and asked how she knew that melody. Komaru hadn’t had a good response. 

“It’s an old melody,” Kirigiri had informed her. “The song of Makoto and Togami.” 

“What?” Komaru had asked. 

“You can retell their story,” Kirigiri had said, eyes wide and full of hope. “And bring back spring.” 

So Komaru knows she has to write this song. But more importantly, she knows she can write this song. 

She’s picking at her lyre absent-mindedly, humming notes and muttering tunes with Kirigiri at her side, when she catches sight of the prettiest girl she’s ever seen just across the road. The girl holds her shawl around her shoulders and presses onwards, keeping her head low as she looks around, searching for something, anything. 

“She’s amazing,” Komaru whispers. 

Kirigiri follows her gaze across the road. “You want to talk to her?” 

“Yes,” Komaru replies, standing up and shoving her lyre into her pack. 

“Go on then,” Kirigiri says, pushing her gently.

Komaru starts across the road, but Kirigiri calls out, “Komaru, wait.” 

“What?” She asks. 

“Don’t come on too strong,” Kirigiri tells her. 

Komaru nods and plucks a daisy from its spot on the side of the road, then she runs up to the girl. 

Oh no. She’s even prettier up close. Her eyes are wide and brown, although the girl’s eyes are narrowed and she’s leaning slightly away from Komaru. She frowns as Komaru approaches her, but Komaru doesn't mind. 

“Come home with me,” Komaru blurts out. 

The girl blinks. “Who are you?” 

“The girl who’s going to marry you,” Komaru replies. “I’m Komaru.” 

“Is she always like this?” The girl asks, looking around. 

“Yes,” Kirigiri replies, crossing the road. Her shoulders are shaking slightly and the corners of her mouth twitch in amusement. 

“What’s your name?” Komaru remembers her manners a little too late.

“Fukawa Touko.” The girl looks more bemused than anything. 

“Fukawa Touko,” she replies. “A melody.” 

“You’re a singer,” Touko says drily, arching one perfect eyebrow.

“I also play the lyre,” Komaru admits. 

“A liar and a player!” Touko laughs. “I’ve met enough singers in my life to know that you aren’t worth it.” She rolls her eyes.

“I’m not like that,” Komaru insists. 

“She’s not,” Kirigiri adds, and Komaru loves Kirigiri for it. “She’s not like anyone you’ve ever met. Komaru, tell her what you’re working on.” 

“I’m working on a song,” Komaru tells her. “And when I’m finished, spring and summer will return, and balance will be restored.” 

Touko arches an eyebrow. “Really,” she says. “I haven’t seen a spring or fall in…” She scrunches her eyebrows, and Komaru thinks it’s one of the cutest expressions she’s ever seen. “I can’t remember,” Touko admits. 

“That’s why my song is so important,” Komaru says. “It’s going to bring the whole world back into balance. It’s a song to heal.” She spins around. “Take what’s broken, make it whole. A song so beautiful, it brings the world back into tune, back into time. And all the flowers bloom.” 

Touko still looks bemused, but she’s listening to her, and that’s enough for Komaru.

“Will you become my wife?” She blurts out, holding out the daisy once more.

“You’re crazy,” Touko drawls. “Why would I do that?” 

“She can make you feel alive,” Kirigiri chimes in, still hovering slightly behind them. 

“That’s a lot,” Touko remarks, her face softening. She turns to Komaru, a smirk on her face, but she reaches out and accepts Komaru’s offered daisy. She tucks it behind her eat and her smirk softens into a proper smile. “What else you got?” 

Komaru beams. “Come with me, and I’ll show you.” 

Kirigiri laughs. “I’ll leave you to it, then,” she says. “See you around, Komaru.” 

Touko rolls her eyes. “I don’t believe I caught your name,” she says. 

“Kirigiri Kyouko,” Kirigiri tells her. “I suppose I’ll see you around too, Touko.” 

And just like that, Kirigiri is turning in the opposite direction and walking away from them. 

Komaru waves as she vanishes, then turns back to Touko. “So…I didn’t actually think I get this far,” she admits, scratching the back of her neck. “But, uh…dinner?” 

Touko snorts. “You really are ridiculous. Come along, we’ll figure this out.” 

Komaru laughs. She would follow Touko anywhere. 

For all her snark, Touko never once tells Komaru to leave. She spends her time laughing, asking for reasons as to why, but Komaru knows that Touko, too, is having fun. And that, perhaps, is most important for her. Komaru spends her days thinking up new ways to impress Touko. She writes a few silly melodies, loves the way they draw a laugh from Touko. 

“You inspire me,” Komaru confesses to her one night. They’re both lying on the ground, staring up at the starry sky. The night is crisp on her skin, but with Touko curled against her side, Komaru feels warm. 

“Really?” Touko asks. 

“Yeah,” Komaru says. “Cheesy, right?” 

“You’re always cheesy,” Touko tells her. “It’s kind of liking having a middle schooler with a crush follow me around.” 

“Yet you’re lying next to me,” Komaru points out. 

“…you would cry if I told you to leave,” Touko mutters. 

“If I bother you, just tell me,” Komaru says. “Okay? I’ll leave if you ask.” 

Touko is quiet. Komaru frowns, wondering if she ought to leave. 

Then, Touko mumbles, “I don’t mind. You can stay. If you want.” 

Komaru smiles. “I won’t abandon you.” 

Touko doesn’t reply to that. But Komaru feels her curl in closer, and her own heart feels full. 

The next morning, a train whistle blows, and Touko gasps. 

“Makoto,” Komaru breathes. 

“Spring,” Touko replies, eyes wide.

They look at each other, and then both of them are sprinting to the train station. 

“Race you!” Komaru shouts, and she sprints down as fast as she can. Behind her, she hears Touko shouting about how it’s unfair. Komaru just laughs and slides into the train station as fast as she can, leaning to catch her breath. 

Kirigiri is already there, and she motions Komaru to join her. Touko arrives a few moments later, breathing heavily. 

“You run too fast,” she says between breaths, and Komaru just laughs. 

Practically the whole town is crowded into the train station, knowing exactly what the train whistle meant. Everyone is shoving and craning their necks, desperate for a glance of spring. 

And then Makoto, the prince of the mines, the harbinger of spring, steps out of the train, carrying a suitcase of summertime. 

He looks around and grins. “It is fantastic to be back,” he calls out. “Let’s have a party tonight!” 

The crowd cheers, and Komaru squeezes Touko’s hand. “We’re totally going,” she says to Touko. 

Kirigiri snorts. “Have fun.”

“Oh, you’re coming too,” Komaru tells her, still gripping Touko’s hand. “I’ve decided to give Makoto the best toast he’s ever heard tonight.” 

“She’s always like that,” Kirigiri says to Touko. 

“I know,” Touko replies. 

But she squeezes Komaru’s hand, and Komaru’s heart soars.


	2. Wedding Song (Touko)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are going well with Komaru, and Makoto's return is making the world even brighter. But then Togami comes to take Makoto away.

It’s been about five months since Komaru has sung her way into Touko’s life, and as much as Touko wants to be annoyed by the naive musician, Komaru really is unlike anyone she has ever met. She remembers how Kirigiri had said, “She’ll make you feel alive.” 

Kirigiri had been right. 

Touko has never believed in love, but Komaru—Komaru, who is foolish enough to believe in love at first sight, probably—is making her reconsider. 

“Were you serious about marrying me?” Touko asks as they’re sitting by the creek. The sun is cold but bright, casting its pale yellow rays over them. Something about the way Komaru is looking about her makes her feel…special. It’s as if they’re the only two people who matter. 

It’s not something Touko thought she would ever get to feel. 

“If you’ll have me,” Komaru replies. “I know we met five months ago, but Touko, I know we’re meant to be.” 

“What, we’ll have an epic love story?” Touko asks, laughing a little. “Nonsense.” Fairy tales don’t exist in this world. Not since Makoto stopped coming to the surface on a regular basis.

“We could!” Komaru stands up so fast that Touko is impressed that she didn’t fall over. “You don’t know, Touko!” 

Touko rolls her eyes. “We’re just—well, I’m just ordinary. You’re bringing back summer.” 

“I think we have one,” Komaru insists. “It’s not Togami and Makoto levels, but you make me happy. I like hanging out with you. I want to make you happy.” Her eyes are wide with intensity and she grabs Touko’s hands. “I love you.”

“Komaru…” Touko has no idea what to say next. 

“Kirigiri always tells me I love too fast,” Komaru says. Touko feels a little overwhelmed by the intensity of Komaru’s stare. “But I don’t care. You’re special, Touko.” 

“Am I?” Touko knows what Komaru will say. She just likes hearing her say it. 

Komaru is the first person who told her that, after all. 

“Yes,” Komaru says simply. 

“If we get married,” Touko says, letting herself play into the fantasy. “Who’s going to make sure we have food? We have no money. I can’t—I won’t live in poverty.” 

“There’s no need to worry,” Komaru insists. “When I sing my song, the trees will bend, the flowers will bloom. We will have everything we need.” 

“But we need food,” Touko reminds her gently. “And a bed, and a table, and rings, and…I don’t know, but we have nothing.” And it’s true—worn clothes and the packs with their valuables are literally all they own. It’s all anyone owns, these days. “We have to hold our own.” 

“I promise you,” Komaru says, “That my song can provide for us.” 

How can a song possibly provide for them? Yet Komaru seems convinced, but what’s more important, Kirigiri also seems to have some faith in Komaru’s song. Touko decides to switch tactics. 

“You want to take me home?” she asks. She can’t believe she’s considering this. But the sun is warm on her face, and the sky is blue. Summer is back, and Makoto has such cheerful presence. And her time with Komaru—even when they first met, in the bitterly cold winter—has got to be the happiest times of her life. 

“Yes,” Komaru says simply. 

“Sing the song,” Touko tells her. “Prove it.” 

Komaru pulls out her lyre. It’s always on her, and Touko kind of loves that about her. 

“It isn’t finished yet,” Komaru says shyly, and then she begins to play. 

Touko watches as Komaru carefully draws her fingers across the strings, the notes coming out crisp and clean. 

And then Komaru opens her mouth, and Touko forgets how to breathe. 

As Komaru sings, the air feels warmer, somehow. The breeze became gentler. The creek water clears, the trees seem ready to bloom. A struggling azalea bush seems to breath a sigh of relief as its leaves glow and a few pink buds blossom. It’s overwhelming. 

It’s summer. 

“King of shadows, king of shade,” Komaru sings. Touko thinks she might start crying. Everything is so beautiful, suddenly, and the world looks so hopeful. 

This is what Komaru can do. Maybe, just maybe, her song really can provide for them. 

“La, la la la, la la la,” Komaru finishes. She looks shy now, yet she reaches out and plucks an azalea, then tucks it behind Touko’s ear. 

“This—” Touko forces her mouth to move. “The song can do this?” 

“Yeah.” Komaru’s cheeks are pink. “But it’s still not finished.” 

“You have to finish it,” Touko declares. She stands up, looking around. The world feels a little brighter, as if Komaru is slowly breathing in new life. Makoto might be here already, but it feels as if Komaru has hastened this spring, somehow. “I know you can.” 

“Thanks,” Komaru replies. She’s blushing madly at this point, and Touko thinks that she looks adorable like that. “Having you around has really helped.”

Touko freezes. “H-Has it?” 

“Yeah,” Komaru breathes out, grinning. “I feel like—like I understand love better now.” 

“Komaru—”

“I’m not asking you for anything,” Komaru says. “You just move at your own pace, okay?” 

Having someone’s heart, it turns out, is an extremely scary thing. 

But she thinks that Komaru might have hers already.

She smiles. “Okay. And your song—it’s beautiful.” 

Komaru beams. 

“And—” Touko has to look away for this part. She can’t stand how Komaru is smiling at her as if she's something precious. “I. I want to hold you.” She focuses on the creek, the way the water babbles happily in its dusty riverbed. “All I’ve known is how to hold my own, but. I want to hold you too.” Her cheeks are on fire now. 

Komaru leaps up, and Touko feels Komaru’s arms around her. “Touko, Touko,” Komaru practically sings. 

“What?” Touko tries to stop herself from leaning too much into Komaru’s arms, but she’s gotten so used to Komaru’s touch that she doesn’t think she could live without it anymore. 

Komaru doesn’t say anything, just presses a soft kiss to Touko’s cheek. Touko can’t stop the smile from creeping over her face. 

It wasn’t wise of her to fall so fast for Komaru, but she can’t say that she didn’t know what she was doing. She opened her eyes, looked at the brightness that was Komaru, and chose to follow her. 

She doesn’t regret it. 

They stand like that, just watching the water rush past, until Asahina comes sprinting up. Her eyes are glowing, and she’s beaming. Komaru jumps slightly, then frowns. Oh. Touko supposes that perhaps Komaru doesn’t really know Asahina. Asahina, along with her stoic girlfriend Ogami, has always been a constant in her life, sometimes vanishing for months before reappearing. Touko had wandered a lot, always trying to fend for herself, and somehow, Asahina had managed to be something of a constant. 

It has been a while since she last saw Asahina. Once she thinks about it, Touko is pretty sure that this is the first time she’s seen Asahina in this town.

“He’s back!” Asahina exclaims. “Come to the station, come quick! It’s Togami!” 

Touko gasps. So does Komaru—Touko feels Komaru's arms tighten around her. 

“We have to see him,” Komaru says, snatching up her lyre and shoving it back in her pack. “Come on, Touko!” 

Touko picks up her own small pack, then picks up her skirts, and runs after Komaru and Asahina. 

They rush to the station, where Kirigiri and Ogami are both standing on the sides and watching. Asahina splits off to join her girlfriend; Komaru makes a beeline for Kirigiri. 

Touko hesitates. She could talk to Asahina and Ogami, although she doesn’t consider herself to be friends with them. But they’ve always been polite enough, and she hasn’t seen them in a while.

Asahina pulls Ogami into a kiss, and Touko scoffs and joins Komaru and Kirigiri. She doesn’t want to deal with the cryptic lovebirds very much anyways.

In front of the train, Makoto is glaring at Togami. “That was not six months!” He shouts. 

“I missed you,” Togami replies. 

“That was barely two,” Makoto hisses, but he turns to the townspeople. “I need morphine, anything, alcohol, now.” 

The station descends into chaos as Makoto scrambles to shove as much drugs and alcohol in his suitcase. People are clamoring to give the bringer of summer whatever he asks. “I can’t stand it down there,” he declares, shoving the things people give him in his suitcase. 

“He and Togami have forgotten how to love,” Komaru says sadly. 

Touko squeezes her hand. “Maybe you can remind them.” 

Kirigiri shakes her head at them. “Not now. Togami owns everything. Komaru, you try anything right now and he’ll ruin you.” 

“Anyone want to work?” Togami calls out, striding into the crowds. “I can offer stability, work, money.” His voice has a depth to it that draws Touko in. She almost wants to ask for a job. 

But those who go with Togami don’t come back. Everyone knows that. 

Still. He makes her wonder how it would feel, to be on top of the world like that. 

Plus, he is really pretty to look at. 

Touko shakes her head. She has Komaru. She doesn’t need to be considering this. After all, Komaru is going to bring back spring. Touko knows she can. She’s seen it.

So she puts aside her uneasy thoughts, and watches as Makoto defiantly shoves his suitcase into Togami’s arms. Togami seems unbothered, as he takes Makoto’s hand and leads him onto the train. Those who are desperate enough for some stability also climb aboard the train. 

Touko trusts Komaru. She has to. 

Komaru squeezes her hand. Touko squeezes back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so quick notes: Asahina and Ogami are the fates. a little weird because 1) there's supposed to be three of them, and 2) in the musical they have really cool lines but they don't exactly interact with the characters. for purposes of this fic, i decided to use them as followers of a sort with Touko-Komaru knows that they're friends with Touko but she doesn't really know them. The other gods (Kirigiri, Makoto, and Togami) do know Asahina and Ogami and will actually interact with them, so don't worry! they're not just going to be lurking on the edges...well, actually, they kind of do. the fates are a little weird but i wanted to include them, so hey now we have side Sakuhina 
> 
> next POV is going to be Makoto! he's currently very sad and i'm sorry for putting him through all this :( he deserves better. also, i forgot to mention this, but he and Komaru aren't related here. oops. 
> 
> thanks for all the support so far! feel free to drop a comment or a kudos if you're enjoying the fic, and i shall try to update sometime soon!


	3. Chant (Makoto)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makoto has to go back to the mines. 
> 
> Content warning: alcoholism

Makoto doesn’t like Togami’s empire. 

It’s not that he doesn’t love Togami. Well, actually, perhaps that’s no longer true. He used to love Togami, that much he’s sure of. 

But at some point, Togami grew controlling, angry, always focused on his work and building his empire, and Makoto realized that there was no place for him in Togami’s world. He was stuck there, and he began running to the top whenever he could. Kirigiri had helped him, would come pick him up sometimes. He enjoyed those summer days, with the sun shining on them and dirt under his fingernails. The world had flourished then. 

But Togami had grown annoyed that Makoto refused to wait, and began keeping him for longer than he should. Makoto had lashed out. Togami had responded in kind. And now they’re—well, this. 

Makoto hates it. 

He misses Togami too, but not—not this version of him. 

Hence, his newfound drug and alcohol addiction whenever he’s down below. 

“I did miss you, you know,” Togami says softly from his seat next to him. 

Makoto sighs. “You’re still too early.” He looks out the window and watches as the trees rush past. They had just started to get their leaves; now fall will come and the world will die once more. It’s incredibly off-balance, not to mention…unnatural. 

He thinks about Komaru, the girl who had offered up a blindingly hopeful toast to Makoto when he returned. Kirigiri had been with her, watching as she gave the toast, before sliding over to Makoto. 

“That’s Komaru,” Kirigiri had told him. “And see that quiet girl next to her? Komaru wants to marry her.” In the flickering bar light, Kirigiri’s gaze had been weirdly intense. “Pay attention to Komaru,” she had said. “She’s gifted, that girl.” 

He thinks of Komaru and the other girl. He never did find out her name, he realizes. 

He wonders if they’ll be alright. As he had been snatching up the morphine, he had seen them standing next to Kirigiri. 

Kirigiri had shook her head at him, probably in disappointment. Makoto knows that she doesn’t approve of his choices. Komaru had simply been frowning.

The other girl though…she had been looking at Togami with something akin to wonder, fear, and…want. 

Makoto sighs again. He can’t be thinking about the others. Time to move on. Right now, he’s moving down below. 

Togami taps his shoulder when the train comes to a stop. “Come on, Makoto.” 

“We’re here,” Makoto states. 

“Yes.” Togami smiles. “Wait until you see what I made for you.” 

Makoto steps out. The workers are all quiet, busy building the wall or whatever else it is Togami has decided to make his newest project. The heat is almost unnatural as it threatens to suffocate Makoto. 

“Why is it so hot down here?” Makoto demands, rolling up his sleeves. “It’s the coldest time of year.” 

“You were gone so long, and I was lonesome. So I built a foundry in the ground beneath your feet. Here I fashioned things of steel, oil drums and automobiles. When you feel the warmth of the fire, think of it as my desire for you.” Togami smiles at him. “One moment. I must help our new workers.” 

Poor fools. They have signed their lives away, and soon they will lose their sense of self. As Togami turns away to guide the new workers to their posts, Makoto pulls out his flask and takes a sip of the alcohol. Vodka. Nice. 

He walks down the path to make his way to his home, wondering if he has lost his sense of self, just like every other worker down here. The light shines on him, and he takes another sip of the vodka. It gives him a comforting warmth, and…okay. Maybe he really has lost his sense of self. 

“Hey, Togami!” He yells out. He has no idea where Togami is right now, and he hates how it still makes him feel sad inside. “It’s the darkest time of year, why is it so bright down here?” 

“Lover,” Togami says softly, appearing out of nowhere and placing his hand on Makoto’s shoulder. Makoto hates that they only touch when Togami is trying to calm him down. “You were gone so long, so I built a power grid for you. It will shine neon here and illuminate the darkness. The silver screen and cathode ray, brighter than the light of day! When you see it, think of my despair of losing you.” 

Makoto looks around, and takes in the harsh artificial lights strung up everywhere. This isn’t how it’s supposed to be, he thinks. Whatever this is, it’s not right. 

“It isn’t right. It’s not natural,” Makoto retorts, and he pulls away from Togami. “Every time, every year, this place is getting worse and worse. Look at it!” He gestures around, at the blank faces of the desperate workers. “There’s coal cars and oil drums everywhere! So many warehouse walls and factories everywhere! Did you think I would be impressed with this neon necropolis?” 

Togami scowls. “If you can’t appreciate this—” 

“Listen to me, Togami,” Makoto hisses, jabbing at Togami’s chest. He wonders if Togami can smell the alcohol on his breath. He wonders if it disgusts Togami like it used to, when he first started drinking. But Makoto has to tell him, has to get through his thick skull somehow. “You think this is good? Haven’t you seen how the land withers and dies up above? The harvest dies, the rivers dry! The oceans rise and overflow! Do you know the despair surrounding everyone? You aren’t just hurting me; you’re hurting everyone!” 

“Lover—” Togami starts, but Makoto is no mood to listen.

“I don’t recognize you anymore,” Makoto snaps. “Leave me alone.” 

“Fine.” Togami folds his arms. “I did all of this for you. But if you don’t want my love, then I will give it to someone else, who can accept it!” He throws his arms out. “I will find someone who will accept these walls, who will think of these walls of my embrace! Some who will be grateful for their fate! If you cannot accept my love, then I will find someone who can!” 

He spins around and storms off, the black fabric of his coattails fluttering in his wake. 

Makoto watches him go, unable to move. Eventually, he forces his legs to move and he manages to stumble to the garden where he and Togami had shared their first kiss. Togami had it built for him, so long ago. Now, the trees are illuminated by the lights that Togami has strung up everywhere else. 

Makoto is the one who keeps the garden alive, though. 

He sits under the pomegranate tree, and pulls his knees close to his chest. 

He really misses Togami. Not this one, of course. But the Togami who had listened to him, the one who played piano when he was feeling maudlin and the one who had pressed gentle kisses on his face when he had cried, that is the one who Makoto misses. 

He looks at his flask. Vodka, seriously. What has become of him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MAKOTO IS VERY SAD IN THIS CHAPTER AND IM SO SORRY BABY T_T 
> 
> this one is a little bit shorter than the last two, but it's also like...only 1/2 of chant if i'm being honest. the other half of it, plus a few other shorter songs, will be covered in the next chapter!! this is because chant switches between orpheus/eurydice and hades/persephone. so we'll be going to go back to Touko's POV! 
> 
> leave a comment/kudos if you enjoyed!! i should have the next chapter up soon!


	4. A Gathering Storm (Touko)

The wind picks up as Kirigiri yells, “All aboard!” Touko watches as the last few stragglers make up their mind and climb on. A whistle blows, long and loud and shrill, signaling the train's departure. Slowly, the great iron train begins chugging and making its way out of the station, smoke rising and turning the once blue sky grey. 

The wind is bitter and cold, and Touko wraps her shawl tighter around herself. 

“Touko,” Komaru says. “Come on.” 

“Of course,” Touko replies. Kirigiri waves at them, and then Komaru is leaping out of the station and into the dry town road. Touko follows Komaru out of the train station, thinking about Togami’s promise. Stability, money. That’s what she needs, more than anything. 

No, she reminds herself. Earlier, before Makoto’s arrival, Komaru had sung her song and the world had flourished. Komaru’s song will put an end to this. She has to trust in Komaru. 

Komaru makes her way back to their little ground, under a large oak tree, where they’re currently settled. Touko follows her. 

She doesn’t know if she’s making the right decision. 

“Touko,” Komaru says, turning around. “Are you cold?” 

“Yes.” Touko wants to wrap her shawl tighter, but it’s already wrapped around her. 

“Come here,” Komaru says, opening her arms. “You look cold.” 

“Thanks,” Touko mutters, hurrying into Komaru’s embrace. They stand like that for a minute or two, nothing but each other to keep themselves warm. Then, Komaru, still keeping her arm around Touko, begins walking again. 

“I have to finish the song,” Komaru says thoughtfully. “To end this. Who knows when Togami will let Makoto leave again?” 

“Yeah,” Touko replies. “But what will we do about food?” 

“It’ll be okay,” Komaru reassures her. “I just need to finish the song, okay?” 

“Right.” Touko frowns. She’ll have to get them food. That’s fine. Touko knows how to do that. “Good luck.” 

The song is important. This she knows.

“I promise it’ll be okay,” Komaru whispers, pressing a soft kiss to Touko’s temple. “I’ll finish the song and set things right.” 

“Yeah,” Touko says. “Your song is amazing. I know you can fix it.” 

“I’ll finish it,” Komaru promises. “It’s not just to bring spring back. It’s also for you.” 

“For me?” Touko feels her cheeks warming. “But I thought it was Togami and Makoto.”

“Of course.” Komaru’s smile is so soft, so gentle. “But it’s a love song, so it’s for you, too. If you’ll have it.” 

“Komaru,” Touko says, and she wonders how she could have ever listened to Togami (Togami, with his powerful words and imposing presence and promises of stability and food and shelter as he stood on that train platform). “Always.” 

Komaru smiles back. “It’ll be perfect.” 

Touko looks at the sky, and she feels uneasy. Already, there’s a few grey clouds coming in. 

She’s being paranoid. Focus on Komaru, on Komaru, on Komaru and her song—

“La, la la la, la,” Komaru sings to the fire. 

Touko trusts her, but there’s chill settling in her bones, and hunger slowly gnawing at her belly. 

The days pass, and Komaru loses herself in the song. “I have to finish it, Touko,” she says. “But the melody. It’s not right, I can’t figure it out!” 

“Take your time,” Touko replies, even though she’s cold and hungry. “I’ll figure something out.” The words sound empty to her ears. 

She tries, searching high and low for food. But the fruits that Makoto had left are quick to disappear. 

“How much longer?” She asks Komaru one night, as they’re huddled around the fire. She managed to procure a few dried fishes, although she had to bargain her scarf to obtain them. “We need shelter.” 

“I don’t know,” Komaru replies, wiping her eyes. “But this stupid song won’t come out right!” 

“I got fish.” Touko presses a piece of fish into Komaru’s hands. “Just—it’s okay. But Komaru, we need shelter.” 

“I know.” Komaru chews the fish. “I know. I just, the song. You know?” 

“Right.” Touko looks down at her hands. "I know." 

That night, the wind blows harder, and Touko curls into Komaru, but she cannot stop the worry running through her mind. 

The next morning, Touko resolves to let Komaru work. She throws herself into searching for food, just like she normally does. Finding food—supporting her and Komaru, really—keeps her busy for a week, maybe two. Touko doesn’t know. But the winds grow bitter, the sun grows colder. This winter is worse than normal. 

Komaru has to finish her song. This, Touko knows. But she has to finish it soon.

She manages to obtain a few warm pita rounds from a baker by trading the last of the dried fish and a small sack of nuts. Hopefully, Komaru will be close to finishing her song when Touko gets back. 

A thin girl with long pink hair yanks the pita out her hands, and Touko sprints after her. 

“Give that back!” She shouts. “It’s all we have!” 

“We’re starving too!” The girl yells back, and faster than Touko can manage, she hops over a wall and vanishes. Even so, Touko scrambles to climb the wall, but when she makes it to the top, there's no sign of the girl anywhere. She's gone, and she's taken the hard-earned pita with her.

Touko presses the palm of her hands to her eyes and tries not to cry. Then, slowly, empty-handed, she begins walking back to the campsite. 

Asahina and Ogami appear out of nowhere. Touko sighs. She doesn't want to deal with them, not today, anyways.

“Unless you have food, I don’t want to hear it,” she grumbles. 

“There isn’t any food left,” Ogami tells her. “Everyone is struggling.” 

Touko scowls. “I know.” 

“This is the worst winter we’ve seen,” Asahina tells her. 

“Leave me alone,” Touko snaps. She’s angry over the loss of the pita. The girl is long gone and there’s no way Touko can find her. 

She still has a few more nuts, so perhaps that’s good. But she doesn’t know how much longer this can keep going. Bargaining and working for food enough to feed them both. 

And Komaru is still so, so unsatisfied with her song. 

Touko bites her lip to prevent herself from crying. She keeps her eyes open and makes her way back to their makeshift camp. 

Kirigiri is there, tracing on the ground with a stick. Komaru is singing again. The endless stream of “la” over and over again, before she shakes her head and tries again. “La la, la la la,” she sings. 

“Komaru, we need shelter,” Touko says, but Komaru is lost in her songwriting. Touko bites her lip and turns to Kirigiri. 

“Is she always like this?” Touko asks. 

Kirigiri looks away, her lips pressed in a thin line. 

“It’s not finished.” Touko doesn’t even ask it like a question. It goes without saying, at this point. 

“No,” Kirigiri says. “I had hoped she would be done by now, but it appears she’s stuck.” 

Komaru throws her lyre down. “I can’t find the tune!” 

“Okay, okay,” Touko says, although she doesn’t know who she’s talking to at this point. “Here. I’ll boil some water.” 

“Sorry, Touko,” Komaru says. “I promised to fix this and I haven’t done it.” 

Touko shakes her head. “I’ll be back. It’s. Your song. No one else can write it.” 

Komaru nods and picks up her lyre. “The gods have forgotten the song of their love,” she tells her. “I’ll remind them. I promise.” 

Touko nods and walks to the creek. 

Asahina and Ogami are sitting there already. However they got there when Touko just saw them, she has no idea. Ogami is peeling an orange, and the smell makes Touko’s mouth water. Touko almost turns around to avoid them. 

“Give her a segment,” Asahina tells Ogami.

“There really isn’t any food left,” Ogami says, handing two segments to Touko. “You can barely feed yourself.” 

“I know,” Touko says, popping a piece in her mouth. The sweet citrus settles over her tongue, and Touko almost cries at how delicious it is. “I have to trust Komaru’s song.” 

“It’s tough,” Ogami tells her. “Are you sure you can do this?”

Touko bristles. “I have faith in Komaru.” 

She stalks off. She can still feel Asahina and Ogami’s eyes on her as she leaves. 

When she gets back to their campsite, a sigh of relief escapes her. Kirigiri has already left, she notices. She presses the last orange segment into Komaru’s hand. Komaru shoves it into her mouth, before absent-mindedly squeezing her hand back. 

Then Touko realizes that she forgot to get water like she promised. She has to go back to the river. 

Fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so like...this chapter just sorta covers a lot of time, but also the growing desperation that Touko is feeling, you know?? like, their situation's bad. she can't hold on forever. idk. i just feel like i gotta defend her.
> 
> anyways, i really liked this chapter!! i had fun writing it, and i hope you had enjoyed reading it. drop a kudos or a comment; i'd really appreciate it~~~ 
> 
> next chapter will be togami's POV! we aren't going to hear his POV very often, but i'm really excited to do a little bit in his head. after all, we know how makoto is handling this, but what does Togami think? does he miss Makoto too??? wow i know i'm writing this but im so excited for it
> 
> welp, that's it!! again, feel free to leave a comment or a kudos (it's my birthday? maybe u leave me feedback? i would appreciate it hahaha) if you liked this! if not, that's cool too! hope u have a great day! and thank you for reading all of this, i super appreciate it!!


	5. Hey, Little Songbird (Togami)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Togami storms up to the top, and looks for someone who can love the mines.

Togami is angry when he storms to the top, determined to find someone who can appreciate the beauty in his mines. He spent so long creating it, determined to make it warm and light to keep Makoto close to him. 

And Makoto threw it all back in his face. Togami had tried to reason with Makoto, but his husband is currently drinking his way through the mines. 

Much like he usually does. 

Togami told Makoto that he would find someone who can appreciate the beauty and love of the mines, and it’s high time he acted on that promise. Makoto has spent his entire time shut in that stupid garden, getting either drunk or high on morphine. He refuses to even come back to their house. Togami had tried to reason with him, once, begged him to come back and sleep, but Makoto had been unyielding in his determination to stay out.

Togami doubts Makoto will even care if he takes on a new lover. After all, it’s not like his husband has cared for anything else Togami has done.

He still hesitates when he sees Kirigiri, knowing that she would not approve. 

“I won’t ask,” she says before he can ask her anything. 

He nods. “Good.” 

Kirigiri frowns at him, unasked questions on her face, but she turns away. “Asahina and Ogami are somewhere by the old river,” she states, not facing him. “They’ve been there for a while now.” 

Togami doesn’t respond, just starts walking to the river. He knows what river Kirigiri’s talking about. As he approaches, however, he sees that the river is more of a creek than an actual river. The dirt stirs up under his feet. 

This is no place for him. And it definitely isn’t a place for Makoto, either. 

Asahina and Ogami are both there, just as Kirigiri had predicted. “Hey, Togami,” Asahina greets him, a broad smile stretched across her face. “What’s up?” 

Ogami grants him a nod, as if giving him permission to speak. Togami scowls. He remembers why he has never been fond of the Fates. 

“I’m looking for someone who can appreciate the love I put into the mines,” he tells them. 

Ogami looks at Asahina. “There’s probably someone around here.” 

Asahina just winks at him. “Everyone here is desperate, Togami.” 

“Even you,” Ogami remarks, arms crossed over her chest, her eyes looking at him as if she knows something that he doesn’t. 

Togami scowls. “I’m the king of the mines. I have nothing to be afraid of.” 

“Yet here you are,” Ogami replies. “Up top.” 

“Talking to us,” Asahina finishes. “Things not good with you and Makoto anymore?” 

“Shut up.” Things haven’t been good for a long time, and Asahina and Ogami definitely are aware of that. 

So is Kirigiri. Togami hates this. Hates that he and Makoto have drifted apart so much. 

He misses Makoto. 

“The king of the mines, on the surface,” Ogami quips, drawing Togami out of his thoughts. “Good luck with whatever you are searching for.” 

“I’ll find it.” Togami folds his arms across his chest. “Do you have anything useful to say?” 

Asahina tips her head. “Me?” She laughs. “This is all up to you, Togami.” 

“We just see the options for what can happen,” Ogami continues. “Choose wisely.” 

“You two are useless.” He regrets coming here. Why did he, anyways? Because Kirigiri had told him where they were? Because he had threatened to find someone else to appreciate the mines? Because…

Asahina smiles and leans into Ogami. “Togami, Togami, Togami. Maybe if you visited us more, this wouldn’t happen.” 

Ogami’s arm wraps around Asahina, and Togami remembers when he could wrap his arm around Makoto like that. Fuck. 

“What have you two planned?” He demands. 

Ogami says, “It all depends on what you do. We didn’t plan anything.” 

“Your move, Togami,” Asahina says, and then she stands up. “But remember…we only see various options, laid out in front of us. What you do is your own decision to make.” She grabs Ogami’s hand. “Come on, Sakura.” 

Ogami smiles and laces their fingers. “Yes,” she replies, and the two of them turn around and walk away, leaving Togami alone by the river. 

He scowls at their backs. “Useless.” 

And then a girl appears, a worn shawl wrapped around her shoulders, her long brown skirt torn at the edges. Togami turns to face her. 

She could be the answer he’s been looking for. Makoto won’t take him seriously, but this girl…this girl will. 

“Who are you?” She asks. There’s not fear in her eyes, just curiosity and…desperation. 

He remembers, with startling clarity, the reasons that had brought him here. This girl, with her curious, desperate eyes; might be exactly what he needs.

“Hey, little songbird,” he greets her. “I’m a busy man. But you may know me as the king of the mine.” 

Her eyes widen, and he walks towards her. “I’ve got riots to quell, and walls to build. But if you’re interested…” 

The girl frowns. “I—” 

He places a finger to her lips. “You’re very pretty,” he tells her. It’s not exactly true, but Togami is willing to lie to get back at Makoto. “It’s a shame that times are so tough. Poverty comes to clip your wings, and knock the wind out of your lungs.” 

Her thin frame trembles, although Togami doesn’t know if it’s from hunger or fear or want. Togami smiles down at her. He’s got her.

“You’d shine like a diamond in the mine,” he tells her, laying the flattery on thick. Her eyes are wide and her cheeks are turning red. He tilts her chin up so she can look in his eyes. “The choice is yours if you’re willing to choose, seeing as you have nothing to lose.” 

“Komaru,” she breathes out. She takes a step back and shakes her head. “Komaru. Where’s Komaru?” 

Togami circles around her, not willing to be stopped by this Komaru person. “Hey, little songbird,” he says. “Let me guess: Komaru is a poet, and…he?”

“She,” the girl corrects. Togami sees how her mouth thins at the mention of Komaru, how the girl clenches her fists, how her trembling stops. 

“She is penniless.” Judging by the way her eyes widen as he says that, he knows he’s right. “So she’s penniless, and when you offer her your hand, she gives your her hand-to-mouth. She writes you poems when the power’s out. Why not fly south for the winter?” 

The girl tugs her worn shawl closer around her. “I—”

He reaches out and tucks a lock of her brown hair behind her ear. “Look around,” he tells her. “See how the vipers and vultures surround you, ready to take you and pick you clean, if you stick around such a desperate scene. People get mean when the chips are down.” 

“But…” The girl bites her lip. “I…” 

“What’s it going to be?” Togami asks. “It’s your decision, little songbird.” 

“I need to think,” the girl blurts out, and she rushes off. 

Togami watches her run. He’d already seen it in her eyes—she’s hungry, and cold, and most importantly, she’s desperate. And he can offer her everything she is looking for, in a way her precious Komaru cannot. 

He told Makoto that he would find someone who would appreciate the stability he provides them. And find someone he did. 

Take that, Makoto. His factory is a reflection of his love, and this girl will be able to see it. 

But the satisfaction of his so-called victory fades as the girl vanishes from sight, leaving him standing by the dry riverbed, cold wind nipping at his face. And Togami can admit to himself what he never would have wanted to admit before: he and Makoto are over. There’s no coming back from this. 

He shoves his glasses up his nose, and scowling, begins his way back to the train station.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i LOVED writing from Togami's pov. he's just like, angrily vibing, and he just wants makoto to kiss him again. 
> 
> also, togami actually being somewhat nice to fukawa??? what??? this is like fukawa's fantasies, isn't it. well, no, because togami is really just using her to get back at makoto. rip fukawa. 
> 
> as always, please leave a kudos or a comment if you are enjoying the story so far! thank u!


	6. Gone, I'm Gone (Touko)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in which touko goes down, down, down...

Touko is shaking from her encounter with Togami. He was so powerful, so alluring. Touko feels like she might collapse. 

He’d promised her food, stability. 

Her stomach growls. She’s so hungry. 

But Komaru—

“Touko,” Asahina calls from the side of the road, pulling Touko from her thoughts. She turns to them, curious, wary. Asahina’s leaning into Ogami’s arms, and Ogami is leaning against a tree. “How are you? How long has it been since we saw you last?” 

“I—” Touko doesn’t even know where to begin. Her knees won’t stop shaking. 

“Still hungry?” Ogami cuts her off. “You have to look after yourself, Touko.” 

“But Komaru,” Touko protests. She presses a hand to her stomach anyways. 

“Life isn’t easy,” Asahina says. “What are you going to do, now that the chips are down?” 

“There’s no food,” Touko blurts out. “I’m hungry.” 

“Love can only get you so far,” Ogami comments. 

Asahina laughs, and presses a kiss to Ogami’s cheek. “It’s your decision,” she coos. “But Touko. There’s nothing wrong with being a little selfish.” 

“Times are tough,” Ogami says. “Everyone likes to think they’re virtuous. But hunger has a way with you.” 

Touko frowns. “I—” 

“It’s up to you,” Asahina repeats. “So what are you going to do, now that the chips are down?” 

Touko wraps her shawl around her. Komaru, who has done nothing but write her song this entire time. 

She is hungry. She cannot keep waiting. 

“I’m gone,” she whispers. 

She turns away, but still, she thinks she catches the barest hint of a smile on Ogami’s face. But no matter. 

She has to look out for herself. There’s nothing more to be done. There’s no food to be found. If this keeps up, she and Komaru will die. 

Touko bites her lip, then she runs to the train station. 

Togami is waiting for her, arms folded across his chest. 

“I see you have made your decision,” he says, his voice a deep, heady drawl. “Come on, then.” He offers his hand.

Touko reaches out and takes his hand. Togami smiles, and a chill runs down Touko’s spine. 

“Let’s go,” Togami murmurs, and Touko cannot stop shaking. 

The train blows its whistle as Touko sits down. She looks out the window and clenches her shaking hands into fists. 

Will she really be safe? 

For some reason, all she can think about is Makoto shoving morphine into his suitcase. 

She shakes her head. She will be safe in the mines. That’s the promise of the mines—stability, shelter, protection, food. And she’s so hungry. So hungry, so cold. The worst winter they’ve seen in a long time. 

When the train pulls into the mines, Togami guides her into his office. He keeps his hand on her back and Touko almost feels afraid. He pulls out a chair for her and she sits. He walks around and sits in his own chair, across from her. 

“You have to sign these papers first,” Togami tells her, sliding them across his desk and to her. 

“Okay,” Touko replies. She looks for a pen, and Togami slides one over to her. 

She doesn’t say anything, just scans the papers before scribbling her signature on the lines. 

“Fukawa Touko,” Togami says, taking the papers from her. “What a lovely name.” 

His gaze is intense. Touko looks away. 

She misses the way Komaru had sang her name to her. “A melody,” Komaru had said, her eyes bright. 

“Come,” Togami says, taking Touko’s hand. “See what we are working on. We’re building a wall.” 

“What?” Touko asks. 

Togami leads her through the mines to a large cinderblock wall and climbs onto a platform. “Children!” He calls out. “Why do we build the wall?” 

The workers all pause what they are doing. “We build the wall to keep us free! That’s why we build the wall!” 

“How does the wall keep us free?” Togami asks. 

“The wall keeps out the enemy! And we build the wall to keep us free!” The workers practically sing the response back to him. 

“Who do we call the enemy, my children?” Togami demands. 

“The enemy is poverty, and the wall keeps out the enemy, and we build the wall to keep us free! That’s why we build the wall to keep us free!” 

“Because we have, and they have not!” Togami shouts. “My children. They want what we have got!” 

The workers call back, “Because we have and they have not, because they want what we have got! The enemy is poverty, and the wall keeps out the enemy, and we build the wall to keep us free! That’s why we build the wall to keep us free!” 

Touko frowns. “So we build the wall?” But Togami is barely paying attention to her now. 

“What do we have, that they should want?” Togami demands, climbing down from the platform and walking down amongst the workers. 

“We have a wall to work upon,” the workers tell him. “We have work, and they do not. The enemy is poverty, and the wall keeps out the enemy, and we build the wall to keep us free. That’s why we build the wall to keep us free!” 

“We build the wall to keep us free!” Togami agrees, grinning at his workers. 

“We build the wall to keep us free!” The workers shouts back. 

Touko shakes her head. “Wait. I. I didn’t—” 

“The deal is signed?” Asahina asks, appearing out of nowhere. 

“I did what I had to,” Touko says, shaking her head and slowly backing up. Her hands won’t stop shaking; why can’t she stop shaking? 

“So did they,” Ogami replies, looking out at the workers. “You better get to work.” 

“How are you guys here, anyways?” Touko asks. 

Asahina shakes her head. “It doesn’t matter.” 

Touko walks down towards the workers, Asahina and Ogami close behind. She picks up a hammer and joins the throng. “I’m Fukawa Touko,” she offers to her neighbor, a boy with fierce dark eyebrows and red eyes. 

No one responds. Her neighbor doesn’t even look at her. 

“I’m Fukawa Touko,” she repeats. 

The workers ignore her. They keep swinging their hammers; keep moving like a well-oiled machine. They pay her no attention. 

She turns to Asahina and Ogami. “Why won’t they look at me?” 

Asahina and Ogami exchange a glance. Touko thinks she sees sadness in Asahina’s eyes. 

“They can look,” Ogami tells her. 

“But they don’t,” Asahina finishes. 

“You’ll look like that soon,” Ogami says. 

“That’s what it looks like to forget,” Asahina says sadly, with a small shake of her head. 

“Forget what?” Touko asks. 

“Who you are, and everything that came before,” Asahina and Ogami tell her in unison. 

Touko feels her blood run cold. “I have to go.” Why won’t her hands stop shaking? 

“Go where?” Asahina asks. 

“Go back!” Touko insists. 

“And where is that?” Ogami asks. 

Touko frowns. She opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. She looks down at herself, hoping for answers, but sees nothing, just her pale steady hands and the worn brown clothing she always wears. She’s just a girl, in the mines. 

“And your name again?” the woman in front of her asks. 

Her…name…

“She already forgot,” Ogami answers instead, and the girl turns away from them, her eyes clouding over with apathy and despair. 

Asahina sighs. “I hate this part.” 

“They always forget,” Ogami tells her, wrapping her arm around Asahina. Around them, workers are moving with their hammers, swinging into the dirt. “You know how it is.” 

“At least she won’t be hungry,” Asahina remarks, putting down the hammer she had grabbed for appearances. “No one is, here.” 

“They’ve traded hunger for a kind of death,” Ogami says. 

“I know.” Asahina sighs again. “Touko was a hungry young girl.” 

“She’s not hungry anymore,” Ogami says. “But she is dead.” 

Asahina smiles sadly. “Hunger is a powerful thing.” 

Ogami squeezes Asahina’s hand, and together the two of them turn away from the workers. No one pays them any mind as they walk down the mines, their silhouettes growing smaller and smaller until they vanish. 

Except for a thin girl with long brown hair and round glasses, who wraps her shawl around herself when she can no longer see Asahina and Ogami. She frowns, then turns back to the wall. 

After all, she has a wall to build.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so much touko pov...but i think that's the last we'll be hearing from her :)  
> if you missed komaru, don't worry! she's coming up in the next chapter! I have not forgotten her! she will be back!  
> thank you for reading! I hope you've been enjoying it so far! drop a comment or a kudos if you want, and have a great day!


	7. Our Lord of the Underground (Makoto)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Makoto is lost

Everything in Makoto’s body hurts, but he forces himself to sit up and look at the artificial light that casts its harsh glow on his world. 

The mines. Right. Makoto groans as he takes in the surroundings. He’s still in the little garden Togami had planted for him. How...interesting. Makoto doesn't want to dwell on that thought. 

How long has he been out? Makoto rubs his eyes and digs around in his suitcase, pulling out his water bottle and drinking from it. The cool water soothes his throat. He wipes his mouth and closes his eyes. 

When he first started drinking, Togami used to find him, gather him up when he was drunk and close to passing out and take him to bed. Makoto remembers waking up, confused, aching, but seeing a glass of water next to him along with a small note from Togami, telling him to stop drinking so much.

The fact that Makoto is still in the garden proves that Togami intended to keep good on his promise and find someone else who would look at the mines and see love in every machine. 

Tears spring into Makoto’s eyes, and he wipes at them furiously. He has no room to be sad. That man who keeps him down here is not his husband. 

He weeps bitterly, then pulls out the morphine. He doesn’t want to be here. Not if he’ll be stuck in this garden forever, with a husband who is searching for someone else to love. He can’t go back to the top—Togami would never let him. 

Or maybe...he wouldn't even notice if Makoto went up. 

Somehow, that's worse. 

He breathes easier as the morphine settles into his veins. Lets it soothe his ragged edges, fill his mind until everything is hazy. There’s no point to being awake, here. He’s content to let time slip by him, willing to watch everything fade away. 

This routine of his continues for a long time, until he hears that Togami has gone. Then he sobers up (barely), and, with his head clear (but he’s still definitely reeling from the after effects of everything, and perhaps he should stop drinking and getting high but how can he, at this point, when it’s all he knows), he leaves his garden and walks to the workers. 

“Hey,” he says to them, offering high-fives and smiles. “How are you doing?” 

The workers always respond to him. “We’re good!” They say. “Prince of the mines,” they call him. Makoto accepts it all. It’s warm, it’s loving, and it reminds Makoto that he is very much alive and present. 

“I’ve got some wind,” he offers, blowing cool breezes to help cut through the choking artificial heat. “Or some rain? If you want a little water—” He creates a few rain clouds, here and there, not enough to create mud, but enough to sooth the parched soil. “How long has it been since you saw the sky?”

The workers cheer as he blows them gentle breezes, but Makoto finds that he cannot focus on them. He is distracted, in spite of everything. 

Makoto fears that if Togami finds another lover, he will not need Makoto anymore, and then he will be trapped in the mines for eternity. Death, of a sorts, but worse, because Makoto cannot die. 

“Prince of the mines!” The workers hail him with smiles and cheers. Right. Focus on the present. 

“I’ll tell you my name: Makoto!” He calls back. “You want a pick-me-up?” He spins around, offering up a few bottles of moonshine to the workers. They accept it gratefully. “Ask me, brothers, and I will get it for you.” 

His statement with cheers and thanks. This is why Makoto likes the workers. They’re fun. They might be working here, stuck for who knows how long, but they, unlike Togami, are willing to chat for a bit. They indulge him, let his curiosities fly, accept him. “You miss the sky?” he asks them. “Don’t worry, there’s a crack in the wall!” 

There is not. That wall is steadily growing taller and taller, with more defenses than necessary. Makoto hates it. It's ugly. More importantly, it shouldn't even be there. 

“I got stars,” he continues, refusing to dwell on his thoughts. “I got a sky full, and the moon, even. She’s right here in my pocket.” He’s still grinning. “Tell my husband to take his time. What the boss don’t know, the boss won’t mind.” 

This is how he spends his time when Togami is gone. But all too soon, the train whistle cuts through the mines, and everyone knows Togami has returned. Makoto slinks to the train station, wanting see if he can talk to Togami. Maybe apologize, although he’s not sure for what. He thinks he might be a little drunk, in spite of doing his best to remain (mostly) sober in front of the workers. 

Togami steps onto the train platform, holding the hand of a very familiar girl. Makoto can’t place her, but he knows he met her up top. 

Togami places his hand on her back, and guides her into his office. 

“Oh,” Makoto whispers. Because now he knows. Togami had found someone who could love the mines, who could see them as an embrace. 

Togami had kept good on his promise. 

“It’s about time,” Makoto mutters, even though he feels as if someone pulled out his guts and scattered them all over the ground. “Since we’ve practically broken up anyways.” 

Yet the tears burn his eyes as Makoto turns away from the train station and makes it back to his little garden. He still stops to say hello to the workers anyways. They’ve done nothing wrong. It’s not their fault that his marriage has fallen apart. 

He spots Asahina and Ogami, looking around the mines, probably searching for a particular soul. He almost runs towards them, but no good news is ever heard from them. 

If they’re here, someone is in danger. Something big will happen. 

Makoto wants no part of it. He takes the long way down to his garden, his frail garden, the only life in this manufactured mine scene. 

Once he’s there, he sits down underneath the pomegranate tree. That’s just where he always sits, he supposes. 

He pushes his hand through his hair and wonders if this is truly the place for him. 

It sure feels like it’s all he has left, after all. 

He gazes at the leaves overhead and lets his mind grow empty. Maybe he should do more morphine.

Then—

That girl. The one who Togami had walked with, his hand touching her back. The girl had been quiet. Her hair was long and limp, and her eyes were round behind her large glasses. 

He knows who she is. She’s the girl who had hovered behind Komaru. He still doesn’t know her name. 

But Komaru—blindingly hopeful Komaru, Kirigiri had said—wanted to marry her. 

The last image he has of her was how she had gazed at Togami with a look of awe and desperation and wonder. 

He recalls Asahina and Ogami’s forms, standing in the mineshaft, gazing at the workers. 

Something is happening, and Makoto closes his eyes. A storm is coming, and Togami will be caught up in it.

Makoto wonders if it will affect him, too. 

He hopes that it will. Maybe, just maybe, this oncoming storm will give him the chance he needs. 

He sighs and lies on the dirt. It probably IS best if he remains sober. After all, he wouldn’t want to miss this. If Kirigiri had been right, and Komaru is going to bring back spring…

He pushes his suitcase away from him, then pulls off his jacket and folds it under his head. The mine glows from the lights Togami has strung everywhere. 

Both peace and sadness settle over him, and for the first time in a long while, Makoto feels patient enough to wait for whatever comes next without turning to alcohol.

Even if he doesn’t know what he’s looking for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know i said komaru would be next, but like...i wanted to do this, and it fits better now, so...oops. i lied. 
> 
> Komaru POV will be the next chapter!! i promise!! 
> 
> also, sorry makoto :( u deserve nice things. i promise you will get a happy ending 
> 
> as always, feel free to drop a kudos or a comment if you enjoyed the chapter! or not! thank u for reading this far!!


	8. Wait for Me (Komaru)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Komaru goes to save Touko.

It takes Komaru two days before she realizes that Touko has gone missing. Her lyre drops to the dust as she shoots to her feet, heart pounding. Without thinking, she rushes out of the campsite, scrambling over rocks and gnarled tree roots, before she remembers that she just abandoned all of their stuff. 

What should she do? Komaru looks at the dead trees around her, then walks back the short distance to their camp. Everything is safe. She breathes a sigh of relief, then sits down to wait. She dusts off her lyre, fingers itching for something to do while she waits for Touko to come back. 

It’s just that Touko has never left her alone for this long before. 

Shoot. Where has Touko gone?

She sighs. “I have to find her,” she declares. Then she looks around her. Meager as their supplies might be, it’s all valuable. She and Touko need this stuff. 

Komaru groans, but she packs up their little campsite anyways. As she finishes wrapping up the last of the blankets, a horrible thought strikes her. 

What if Touko comes back? She doesn’t want Touko to think she abandoned her. After all, that's all Touko's ever known. Komaru cannot be another disappointment.

She takes out a small scrap of paper, scribbles “Back Soon—Komaru” on it, and tacks it a tree. Then, satisfied, she makes her way to town. 

All around her are the same faces of the tired, the beaten, the weary. This winter is harsh, Komaru knows that. Touko has told her; Kirigiri has told her. They both reminded her that this winter could stretch on forever if she doesn’t hurry and finish her song. That's why it was so important. 

She blows on her hands to keep her fingers warm, then looks around, desperate to see Touko’s face. But there is no sign of Touko anywhere. She doesn’t even see the girls who hovered around Touko sometimes. Asahina and Ogami, Touko had said. Her face had softened when she talked about them. Constants, of a sort, she had said. 

Then, just down the road, she spots Kirigiri, and almost cries with relief. Her friend looks lost in thought, gazing at the sky as she leans agains tthe train station wall. 

If anyone knows where Touko is, it’s Kirigiri. 

Komaru sprints towards her. 

“Kirigiri!” She calls. “Kirigiri, how are you?” 

Kirigiri turns to her. “Well, well, well,” she says. “Look who it is. The big artist herself.” There’s no malice her tone, even though the words sound mocking. “What brings you away from your song?” 

“It’s Touko,” Komaru explains. “I haven’t seen her. Where is she?” 

“Better get yourself another muse,” Kirigiri says. “Touko’s gone.” 

No. “Gone where?” 

“Why do you care?” Kirigiri turns away. “There’s plenty of other people. Muses change, and Touko’s gone.” 

“No. Where’s Touko? Where has she gone? Wherever she is, that’s where she is going.” Komaru plants her feet in the dirt and lifts her chin. She has to find Touko. 

Kirigiri snorts. “Where else? She’s gone below, of course.” 

To the mines. 

The...the mines. 

Komaru’s heart plunges to her feet. 

“Why?” 

“Hunger,” Kirigiri says. “She called for you, but you weren’t listening.” 

“I—the song—” But her excuses are useless, and Komaru knows that. “No,” she admits, shoulders sagging in defeat. “I wasn’t.” Touko is gone, and Komaru has to fix it. 

Forget the song. Forget spring. Touko is more important. 

“I have to save her,” Komaru declares. 

Kirigiri snorts again. “And how, exactly, do you propose to go about that?” 

“I’ll go down to the mines,” Komaru says. She tilts her chin up so she can better look at Kirigiri. “And then I’ll look for her, and when I find Touko, I will take her home, and I will give her everything she needs.” 

Kirigiri regards her with a long cool look, and Komaru meets her gaze. She will not let herself be cowed out of this. 

“Do you have a ticket?” Kirigiri asks, finally. 

Komaru scowls. “No,” she admits, looking back down at her feet. 

“I didn’t think so.” Kirigiri shakes her head and looks away. “Give it up.” 

Give it up? Absolutely not. “I’m going to save her,” Komaru declares. “I can get a ticket.” 

“Do you really want to go?” Kirigiri asks, her eyes fixated on the grey sky. “The mines aren’t for the sensitive souls, you know. Do you really, truly want to go?” 

“With all my heart,” Komaru responds, because it’s true. She focused too long on her song. But Touko is more important. And Komaru will save her. 

It's what Touko deserves.

Kirigiri turns towards her. “Then don’t wait for the train. There’s another way. Here.” She pulls out a blank sheet of paper, and a pen. “I’m not supposed to say, but I’ll show you.” 

Komaru leans in close. 

“You’ll have to walk,” Kirigiri begin, drawing rough outlines for Komaru. “See this telephone wire? Follow that down, down, around. The road will be long and lonely. You will have to get through the wall; avoid the dogs. Throw them a bone; that ought to do it.” She continues drawing. “You cannot walk in the day; you must move under the cover of the night. Do not talk to anyone; those mines will suck you dry.” She hands the paper to Komaru. “And most importantly. You are Naegi Komaru, and you cannot rely on anyone but yourself down there.” 

“Thank you,” Komaru says, and she throws her arms around Kirigiri. “I won’t forget you.” 

Kirigiri’s eyes soften. “Good luck.” 

Komaru smiles, and she takes off. 

It’s easy enough to find the telephone wire Kirigiri mentioned, and Komaru sets up camp there until the sun sets and the moon rises. From there, Komaru follows the telephone wire, walking quietly along the railroad tracks. She doesn’t say anything, just tugs her cap low over her eyes and shoves her hands into her pockets. She has a mission: one more important than her original goal. Her song is not as important as Touko. 

Spring isn’t as important as Touko. 

To keep herself company, she sings her song. Just the pieces she knows will stay, which ultimately is just the “la, la la la, la la la.” After all, that’s the the melody Kirigiri had said was the original song from Makoto and Togami. 

It’s not much of a song, and it’s caused so much more trouble than it’s worth. She already lost Touko. 

Spring…spring can wait. Touko is more important. She stops singing. 

“Wait for me, Touko,” Komaru whispers to the wind. “I’m so sorry. But I’m coming.” 

The moon begins to vanish, and the sun begins to rise. Komaru groans, but Kirigiri’s words come back to her. Travel at night.

Walking is a lot of effort, and she's getting tired anyways. She sets up camp, and sits down to rest. 

“Wait for me, Touko,” she murmurs. “I’m coming for you.” 

There’s no response, and Komaru wipes away a stray tear, before curling up to sleep. 

She wakes from a dreamless sleep as the sun is beginning its dramatic descent. There’s no clouds today, and the sun washes the cold sky in gold and orange. It’s a beautiful sight. 

Komaru saves it, so she can tell Touko all about when she finds her. Then she packs up her things, and as soon as the sun vanishes behind the earth, she sets off once more. 

This night is cold, but the winds are still. Komaru pulls her cap low and walks. 

She’s been walking for a long time, her legs growing weary, when she sees two shadowy silhouettes standing on the train tracks. 

“Who are you?” One of them asks. 

Komaru frowns. Should she talk to them? 

“Where do you think you’re going?” The other asks. 

“Why are you all alone?” The first one asks. 

“Who do you think you are?” The second one laughs. 

They’re trying to distract her, she thinks. But no matter. She is here for Touko. 

“Who do you think you are, to walk a road that no one has ever walked before?” They ask in unison, this time.

This is for Touko, she reminds herself, and so she opens her eyes, squares her shoulders, and faces them head on. 

Komaru looks at their silhouettes, and she recognizes them. It’s Ogami and Asahina. They normally talked to Touko. If they’re here, she must be getting close. 

There’s only one answer she can give them.

She pulls out her lyre, and sings. She sings the song she knows, the only parts of it that she knows will be in the song. She sings La as if it is all that matters. 

The moon illuminates their faces, and she sees that both of them are smiling at her. She puts her lyre down slowly. 

“Good luck,” Asahina says, and she actually winks, before she and Ogami turn away.

“Yes!” Komaru cheers as they vanish. She laughs, then tucks her lyre back in her pack. “Touko, I’m coming!” 

She’s so close now, she can almost feel it. She starts walking, but excitement and adrenaline floods her veins and she starts running. 

“Touko, I’m coming,” she promises. “Wait for me.” 

She runs and she runs, and then the great wall that Kirigiri had labelled “Styx” rises above her. She has to skid to a stop, and leans over to catch her breath. Alright. Stealth time. 

Komaru takes a deep breath. She knows what she has to do. 

First, the bones for the dogs. She digs around and tosses them at the dogs near her. The dogs fall upon them, ravenous. Komaru winces when the light glints off of the sharp points of their teeth. But she has to go now, so she steels her nerves and creeps forward. 

The dogs pay her no mind, and Komaru rushes up to the gate, hands shaking. Her finger reach into her pocket and she fumbles around to grab the coin Kirigiri had given her.

“I’m here for work,” she calls out, pleased that her voice doesn’t tremble. 

A figure appears at the top of the gate, and Komaru imagines that he’s smiling. She can’t see any distinguishing features. 

“Show me,” he says, his voice low but smooth. His hair is fluffy around him, a giant cloud of hair. 

Komaru holds the coin up, her hand still shaking. “Please,” she begs, desperation clinging to her bones. “I’m here for work.” 

The guy looks down at her, and Komaru holds her breath. “Okay,” he eventually says, and opens the gate. “Welcome to the mines.” 

Komaru looks at the darkness before her, then she clasps her hands together and squeezes. This is for Touko. 

She shoves her hands into her pockets, and walks inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ALRIGHT YALL I PROMISED WE WOULD HEAR FROM KOMARU AND FINALLY, SHE'S HERE. 
> 
> this was such a fun chapter to write!! leave a comment or kudos if you enjoyed it, and i shall see you all whenever the next update is! if you've made it this far, well, thank you for sticking around! i really appreciate it!


	9. Flowers (a girl)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girl has forgotten.

The girl’s hands ache as she swings hammer. She swings anyways. After all, it’s her job. That much, she knows.

It’s just…

just...

Her hands ache, and she peers at her palms, seeing new blisters. Proof, then, that this is not what she should be doing.

The girl knows that this wasn’t what she had been doing originally, but she can’t remember what she should be doing. She bites her lip and frowns. All she can say is that she isn’t where she’s supposed to be.

The girl looks around, studies the blank faces of her co-workers. That’s right. She’s building a wall. Why do they build the wall? To keep out the enemy. Who is the enemy? Poverty. Those outside the wall want what they have. This is why they are building the wall. She is helping them build the wall.

The girl does not say anything, in spite of her racing thoughts. After all, there is nothing for her to say.

So she picks up her hammer, and swings, and ignores the pain in her hands. She has to keep her head low, has to build the wall. She knows that.

But something is wrong. She has forgotten something, something important. This she is certain of, although what it possibly could be she doesn’t know.

Some people are pushing mine carts. That’s not her job, of course. She knows that much. She hasn’t forgotten her job.

But it tugs at her gut, still. The constant sense that something is wrong. So she looks around again. In front of her are people laying down brick and smoothing cement. She knows that’s not her job either.

She stills for a moment, letting the sound of the mines wash over her. The brilliant lights shine on her, and she wipes sweat from her brow. Her fingers reach to tighten her shawl, before she remembers that it’s hot and she has no need to wrap her shawl around herself.

She twists a strand of her hair around her finger, then looks down. Her hair is brown. That’s right. It should be brown.

Why is she having such a hard time remembering who she is?

She has a job. She is building a wall. Why do they build the wall? To keep out the enemy. Who is the enemy? Poverty. Those outside the wall want what they have. This is why they are building the wall. She is helping them build the wall.

The girl swings her hammer. This is her job. This she knows.

But she’s forgetting something. Something important. That too, she knows.

Her thoughts are going in circles. She will never get anywhere if this is all she can think about.

So the girl swings her hammer, and furrows her brows, and tries as hard as she can to remember.

Unbidden, the image of a ripe orange shines in her mind. Colors, food. Those are important. She knows what those are.

She focuses on the mental image of the orange. Food. That was important to her, once.

Another swing of her hammer. Oranges…what other colors? Lily white. Oh, a flower. Another color. Colors are rare, aren’t they?

There’s not many colors down here. The earth is dark, the walls are black. The lights are harsh and white. The world is a monochromatic scale of white and black, darkness and light.

See, she’s forgetting something. This she knows. And it’s incredibly important, and she has to remember it. She has to.

It has to do with flowers, she thinks. Flowers and spring. An orange, a lily. Another flower. Something offered to her when she first—

When she first—

A daisy, small and white, with pink tinged petals. A daisy, offered to her! And a voice saying, “Come home with me.”

She doesn’t remember how the voice sounded, but she has someone waiting for her. Someone who will take her home.

Someone who gave her a flower, once upon a time.

The girl swings her hammer mindlessly, but her focus is on the daisy, and the voice saying, “Come home with me.”

Had she...

Had she lost the daisy?

When Togami, king of the mine, had touched her lips, she had been afraid, and desperate for the one who offered her a daisy. She remembers that much. If only she could remember them.

That person…with the sun warm on their faces, and comfortable embrace. She puts down her hammer and wraps her arms around herself, pretending that someone is holding her.

Someone should be holding her. She unwinds her arms and picks up her hammer once more. But it’s her fault that she is down here, all by herself.

She had wanted to fall asleep, to close her eyes and disappear. She had wanted stability, comfort, the luxury of not worrying about her next meal. But instead, she’s stuck in the mines.

She misses the sun, she realizes. She doesn’t know how long it’s been since she saw it.

That’s the thing, she supposes. Dreams are sweet until they’re not. Men are kind, until they’re not. Flowers bloom, until they rot and fall apart. This dream of hers, her desire for stability, it had led her here.

Alone.

She’s missing someone. She opens her mouth to call out, but nothing comes out. She’s not sure that anyone is listening to her anyways.

She’s not sure anyone would have heard her, even if she opened her mouth.

Someone should squeeze her hand. That was always something, a gentle hand squeeze to remind each other that they were there.

Who did she leave behind?

She wants to call out, but she doesn’t know who she is calling for.

Whoever she left behind, she hopes that they will find her, someday.

They will find her, lying in this bed she has prepared for herself.

She wishes she could remember more than just gentle touches and whispered words. But try as she might, she can’t even begin to imagine her lover’s face. The only thing she can recall is the daisy, its small white petals tinted a beautiful magenta.

She picks up her hammer. She will simply have to trust that this person, the one she left behind, will come down and save her. Even though it is her fault that she is down here, swinging her hammer to build the wall, to keep out the enemy, the enemy which is poverty…

There is no way she will be leaving the mines.

The girl wipes her eyes, and is surprised when she feels the tears on her hand. She hadn’t realized she was crying.

Why is she crying?

Didn't she bring this on herself?

And then she hears it.

“Come home with me,” a voice says, breathless, soft, sad.

She turns around, and sees _her_.

“It’s you,” she breathes.

“It’s me,” _she_ replies, grabbing her hands. The girl knows that she knows this other girl’s name. It’s on the tip of her tongue, ready to burst out.

“Komaru,” she blurts out.

“Touko,” Komaru replies, and she squeezes Touko’s hands, and Touko wonders how she could have ever forgotten Komaru’s smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhh, it's been a while since i updated huh? my bad, i had to deal with finals. but im back! 
> 
> anyways, here we are!! this was probably one of my favorite chapters to write, mostly because it was so different? no touko at all. just a girl trying to remember. hopefully it turned out okay 
> 
> feel free to drop a comment or a kudos if u enjoyed it! and have a great day; stay safe and healthy out there~~


	10. Come Home with Me (Komaru)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Komaru finds Touko, but it's not as easy as she hoped.

The first thing Komaru is aware of is just how bright it is in the mines. The second, of course, is the overwhelming heat, and she pulls off her jacket and ties it around her waist. 

As soon as she can better take in surroundings, she begins to look around. Someone shoves a hammer in her hands, and Komaru carries it as she begin to weave her way through the crowds. She cranes her neck, looking over everyone’s heads, but try as she might, she cannot see Touko anywhere. 

Despite not having been down here for very long, she can safely say that the mines are overwhelming. People press around her, moving with a single-minded focus, swinging their hammers and hacking at stone. The wall grows stronger, taller, thicker as Komaru fights against the crowds, desperate to find Touko. All around her, people are chanting, looking to keep the wall built and protect themselves. And none of the voices are familiar. She strains her ears, peers over heads, desperate for a glimpse of Touko. 

She longs to call out, but she can still hear Kirigiri’s warnings to her. “Keep your head down low,” Kirigiri had said. So she ducks her head, and looks around, wordlessly searching, praying that Touko will appear soon. 

Her hair begins to stick to the back of her neck, and the hammer is heavy in her hands. Komaru holds it close, hoping it can offer her some slim measure of protection. Pretends that she knows what she is doing with it, in hopes of blending in with the crowds better. No one pays her any mind as she forces her way through. 

How can she possibly find Touko like this? She cannot risk drawing too much attention to herself, so she has to press through the workers, and pray that soon, she will just happen upon Touko. How foolish of her. 

Komaru shakes her head. She didn’t walk all this way just to give up. She has to keep going. 

She looks up, cranes her neck, and gasps. 

There, up ahead—a worn shawl with faded checkered pattern. She knows that shawl. 

Slowly, she puts the hammer down, taking in the girl’s silhouette. Around her, she hears the rhythms of the mines, but it doesn’t matter. It looks like her. It has to be her. 

She runs forward, shoving past the workers, and wants to cry. In front of her is Touko, wiping her eyes, back turned to her. But she knows that girl, knows the way her hair falls, even in this electric heat that fills the mines. She knows the way those hands look, knows those round glasses perched on her small nose. 

She opens her mouth, and—

And—

She had practiced this moment so many times, as she was walking down the long road. But instead of the apologies that she had planned, the only thing that comes to mind is the words she first said to her. 

“Come home with me,” she blurts out, and Touko starts, then turns to face her. Her eyes are clouded, but they clear up almost immediately, and a smile starts to grow on her face. 

“It’s you,” she breathes. 

“It’s me,” Komaru confirms, and she reaches out and grabs her hands. She loves the way Touko’s hands feel in hers. 

“Komaru,” Touko blurts out, tears springing to her eyes. 

“Touko,” Komaru sings back, and she pulls Touko into her arms and relishes in having found her. 

She can’t believe that she found her. 

Touko steps back, a smile on her face. “I called your name before,” she tells Komaru, her eyes still watering. 

“I know,” Komaru says. 

“You heard?” Touko asks, and she looks so happy, that Komaru wants to keep her smiling forever. 

Even though she’s at fault for this…mess.

“No,” Komaru admits. “Kirigiri told me so.” She looks down at their entwined fingers. “Whatever happened, I’m to blame.” 

“No,” Touko says gently, and she steps closer to Komaru, but Komaru can’t. She doesn’t deserve Touko’s kindness. 

“You called my name,” Komaru says softly, still looking down at their hands, even though she quietly steps back. “I didn’t hear.” 

“You still came,” Touko breathes back. But then her brows crease, and she frowns. “How did you get here? On the train?” 

“No,” Komaru tells her. “I walked a long way.” 

“How’d you get beyond the wall?” Touko asks, her eyes wide. 

“I sang a song. It was so beautiful, and the stones wept, and they let me in,” Komaru says. “And I can sing us home again.” 

Touko’s face falls. “No, you can’t,” she protests. 

“Yes I can!” Komaru insists. 

Touko drops her hands, but Komaru refuses to let her go. She can't lose her again.

“You don’t understand, Komaru,” Touko tells her. “I can’t.” 

“Why?” Komaru asks. 

“It’s my fault,” Touko whispers. 

“We’ll figure something out,” Komaru promises. “We will.” 

She looks up, up at the artificial lighting, and then freezes as a shadow cuts through it all. 

“Hey, Touko?” She asks. “Does Togami come down here often?” 

“I’ve only seen him once,” Touko responds, confusion flitting across her face. “Why?” 

“You’re about to see him again,” Komaru offers. 

Togami strides towards them, his gaze fixated on her, his tall figure cutting a path through the workers. Komaru bites her lip. She didn’t expect him to come down. 

Kirigiri didn’t say that Togami would show up. 

“Young lady,” Togami drawls, his voice low and smooth. “I don't think we’ve met before. You’re not from around here, girl. Don’t know who the hell you are but I can tell you don’t belong. These are workin' people, law-abiding citizens. Go back to where you came from. You’re on the wrong side of the fence.”

Komaru blinks. “Uh…” 

What is going on. 

“Sorry?” She offers. 

Beside her, Touko looks away. Komaru looks at Touko, then back at Togami. 

“Hi?” She tries again. 

As if today couldn’t get any weirder, Makoto comes sprinting up from nowhere and grabs Togami’s shoulder. “Togami,” he says, breathing heavily. “I know this girl.” 

Togami turns away from Komaru, and Komaru can’t help the sigh of relief that escapes her. Makoto straightens himself, prepared to take Togami on. They’re saved, thanks to Makoto.

“One of the unemployed?” Togami asks, looking down at Makoto, almost as if he’s disgusted. 

“Her name is Komaru,” Makoto hisses. He looks up at Togami, glaring, and…Komaru remembers. 

Her song was to remind them of their love. 

Oh, Makoto cannot help them. 

“Stay out of this,” Togami snaps, and shakes Makoto’s hand off of his shoulder. Makoto hisses as if he’s been stung, but Togami pays him no mind, choosing instead to stride towards Komaru.

Komaru instinctively steps in front of Touko. Fine. She’ll do it on her own. 

“You hear me?” Togami asks, glaring down at her, and Komaru has never felt so powerless before. 

“I’m not going back alone!” Komaru declares, even though her knees are wobbly and she fears she might fall at some point. “I came to take her home!”

Touko tugs on her hand. “Komaru, no!” 

Togami just laughs, and Komaru feels her gut sink. “Who the hell do you think you’re talking to? She can’t go anywhere, even if she wanted to. You’re not from around her, so you wouldn’t know. But everyone and everything around here, I own.” He looks at Komaru, his eyes like ice, and it takes everything in Komaru to not turn and run right there. “I only buy what others choose to sell.” 

“What?” Komaru asks, her voice a whisper. Behind her, Touko drops her hand, and looks away. 

“You didn’t know?” Togami asks, and he laughs, a cruel smile crawling on his face. “She signed the deal herself. And now, she—” 

“It isn’t true,” Komaru blurts out, turning to Touko, who still won’t meet her eyes. “It isn’t true. Touko—” 

Touko presses her index fingers together, still staring at the ground. “I did.” She looks up, finally. Her eyes are tearing up once more, but these are not the happy tears from earlier. “I do.” 

Komaru’s lungs burn. Touko…signed the deal herself. 

She agreed to do it. 

This was totally Komaru’s fault. 

She should have listened. 

“She belongs to me,” Togami finishes, and he reaches out and pulls Touko into his side. Makoto winces, but Komaru just feels—empty. 

She should have listened. 

No. Scratch that. 

She should have provided. 

“Komaru—” Touko starts, but Togami pulls her away, and Komaru wipes her eyes and turns away from the two. 

She should have listened. But she hadn’t, and she lost Touko forever. 

Komaru pulls her cap over her head, and begins walking away. Her mind buzzes from the way Touko had refused to meet her eyes when Togami had appeared. 

She worked too hard on her stupid song.

Her stupid song that didn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things.

She barely pays attention to the workers as she passes them, just leaves. She can’t face Togami. 

She can’t face Touko. 

Up ahead, Asahina and Ogami are sitting on two barrels. Familiar faces. Komaru finally understands how Touko must feel about them. She certainly doesn’t want to talk to them, but…

She stops in front of them anyways. 

“Komaru,” Asahina greets her, smiling slightly. 

“You look tired,” Ogami comments. 

“I lost Touko,” Komaru admits. “I lost her for good. I couldn’t save her, in the end.” 

“That’s just how it is,” Asahina says softly. “You win some, you lose some.” 

“I didn’t think it would turn out like this,” Komaru admits. 

“It wasn’t any use,” Asahina tells her. 

“You were bound to lose,” Ogami says sadly, and shakes her head. 

“She’s a singer,” Asahina remarks. “Sakura, let’s sing. She’ll understand that way.”

“What's done, what's done, what's done is done. That’s the way the river runs,” they sing together, and Komaru’s eyes burn with unshed tears. “So why get wet? Why break a sweat? Why waste your precious breath? Why beat your handsome brow? Nothing changes, nothing changes, nothing changes anyhow.”

Komaru looks at them. “Because Touko matters more than any song I was trying to write.” 

Asahina and Ogami both stop their singing, and Asahina gasps softly, hands flying up to her mouth. 

“Komaru—” Ogami starts, but Komaru does not want to hear it. Instead, she storms off. She walks deeper into the mines, tears springing into her eyes once more. Messy sobs force their way from her throat, and Komaru cannot help it: she has to take a moment to wail, to let her tears fall from her eyes, and release the sadness. 

Touko left her.

Because Komaru wasn’t good enough. 

Her chest heaves as she takes in shaky inhales, each one growing steadier. 

“If it’s true…” she whispers. 

“If it’s true what they say,” she whispers. 

She stands up, and keeps walking. 

“If it’s true,” she sings gently. “What they say.” 

This song…this one is Touko’s, and Touko’s alone. She should have written Touko a song, not one for Togami and Makoto. 

She takes another breath, and sings it, louder this time. 

“If it’s true what they say…and she’s gone.” 

If only she had listened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> good thing this isn't the end of the story lmao
> 
> welp, u know the drill~ drop a comment or kudos if u liked it


	11. If It's True (Makoto)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Makoto finds his resolve.

Makoto is completely (okay, mostly. He still has a headache) sober when he sees Togami storming past him, muttering something about a disturbance in the mines. So Makoto follows him as quickly as he can. He wastes no time tying his jacket around his waist (he would normally put it on, but it’s literally too hot to wear). Togami cuts through the crowds, and Makoto has no problem following in his wake, waving at the workers but not stopping to chat. It’s more important that he figures out what is going on. 

Something big is happening, and Makoto can feel it. After all, Togami doesn’t leave his office unless he has to fix some disturbance. And Makoto has been waiting for a chance this whole time. This could be the opportunity he needs to set things right between him and Togami. 

Togami eventually stops in front of two workers, and Makoto cranes his neck to see. He has to push forward a little more, still looking, and then he catches a clear glimpse of the girl’s face.

It’s that girl that Togami had gently led into his office, and for one moment, Makoto considers walking away. 

Then he sees Komaru next to her, and Makoto knows. He hears Kirigiri telling him that Komaru was going to bring back spring, remembers Komaru declaring that she was going to marry the girl. 

This is important. It’s what he’s been looking for. 

With speed he didn’t know he was capable of, Makoto sprints up, just in time to hear Togami drawl out, “You’re on the wrong side of the fence.” 

“Togami,” he blurts out, grabbing Togami’s shoulder to make sure that he looks at him. Why is it so hot down here? But he can’t focus on that. He just has to get Togami’s attention off her and onto him. Hear me out, he wants to scream. Look at me. I’m here.

Instead, he simply says, “I know this girl.” 

Togami actually turns to him, and Makoto draws himself up. He looks at Togami, his mind clear for what feels like the first time in forever, and Togami…

Togami looks back at him. His blue eyes are wide, and his mouth parts open slightly, as if he wants to say something. 

How long has it been since they looked at each other like this? Eye to eye, minds clear and calm instead of angered? 

Foreign as this interaction is, what hurts the most is just how badly he wants Togami to hold him right now. Despite all the years, despite all the fighting, Makoto thinks that he still loves Togami. 

He doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to stop.

“One of the unemployed?” Togami asks, arching an eyebrow, unaware of Makoto’s racing thoughts. 

Right. Makoto is here on Komaru’s behalf. 

“Her name is Komaru,” he tells Togami. If he can vouch for Komaru, maybe Togami—

Togami scoffs and pulls away from Makoto. “Stay out of this,” he practically growls, and Makoto tries his hardest not to cry at the blatant rejection. 

Silly him. He should be used to it. 

After all, that was what drove him to drink (and do heroin, and every other addiction he currently has) in the first place. 

Togami stalks over to Touko and Komaru, and Makoto sighs. It’s all over now. There’s no way Komaru will get out of here. 

“I came to take her home!” Komaru shouts, stepping protectively in front of Touko. 

Komaru…the one who had offered him a toast so dazzling hopeful, Makoto had felt like fall would never come. 

That’s who Komaru is. 

Makoto watches as Togami practically mocks Komaru for daring to defy fate. He watches as Togami sneers down at the couple. Komaru is still shielding Touko with her body, and Touko looks so nervous, so worried. Makoto wonders if it’s going to be okay. 

He wonders if his silent presence is even helpful, or if he's wasting his time. 

He should go. He won’t be able to do anything. 

“You didn’t know?” Togami asks, and he actually has the audacity to laugh. Makoto bites his lip. He really should go. “She signed the deal herself. And now, she—” 

“It isn’t true,” Komaru blurts out, turning to Touko, who is very determinedly looking at the ground. “It isn’t true. Touko—” 

“I did,” Touko whispers sadly. “I do.” 

That’s how the mines work. Makoto stays silent. 

He doesn’t have anything to say, after all. 

He doesn’t know what he would say. 

Togami’s holding Touko the way he used to hold Makoto, and Makoto feels hurt rising in him. All those years really meant nothing to him. 

Cowardice, shame, and sadness curdle in his stomach, and Makoto wishes he’d left, but something roots him in place. 

Komaru’s face falls. Whatever hope she once had has been…extinguished. She pulls her cap low over her eyes and turns away. Makoto wants to say something, but he doesn’t know how to alleviate the situation. He has nothing to say. 

What can he possibly do? Togami shook him off like he was nothing. He shook them all off like they were nothing. 

“Back to work, songbird,” Togami says, just loud enough for Komaru to hear. “You belong to me, after all.” 

Touko doesn’t say anything. She doesn’t have to. 

Komaru keeps walking. She doesn’t even look back, her figure a sad shape that disappears back into the mines. 

Makoto watches as Togami’s smile spreads even more as Touko slowly bends down and picks up her discarded hammer. 

“Togami—” he starts, but then stops. What would he even say to the king of the mines? What can he possibly say to the man who has…well…forgotten him? 

Togami turns to him anyways. “What, husband?” He practically spits, and Makoto wraps his arms around himself. 

“It’s not important,” Makoto tells him, looking away. “I’ll see you later.” If there is a later, Makoto adds silently. 

Togami nods and turns back to his workers, reminding them about building the wall. Makoto indulges in two, three, five seconds to admire the sharp figure Togami cuts in the mines, before he turns around and walks off. 

Whatever he’s looking for, this wasn’t it. 

He shakes his head and sighs. Silly him. He can’t believe he let himself get so caught up Komaru’s hope. For what? Hope hadn’t done much for him, in the past. Even he had been hopeful, once, in spite of the sorry state he was in now. He had been hopeful that he would have been able to convince Togami to bring back spring, hopeful that he would be able to convince Togami to just look at him, hopeful that their love wasn’t irrevocably damaged. 

Hopeful that Togami wasn’t off chasing better things, leaving Makoto to languish in the darkness and grime of the mines. 

But it’s all too clear that Togami doesn’t really care about what Makoto wants. Not anymore. 

He passes by Ogami and Asahina, neither of whom pay him any mind. He doesn’t bother with more than a nod either. Whatever they’re doing is their business, not his. Makoto barely even belongs to the mines. If anything, Asahina and Ogami’s business concerns Togami. Makoto keeps his head low and keeps wandering, no destination in mind. 

He continues like this for a while, meandering around the mines, feeling the harsh lights shine down on him. His neck is sticky with sweat and his feet ache. Tired, sad, and maybe a little desperate (a lot desperate), Makoto sits down. 

He doesn’t really know where he is. 

He misses being drunk. He’s tired of being sober. 

He sighs and shakes his head. He shouldn’t be thinking such thoughts. Kirigiri would be proud of him, if she knew that he hadn’t drank anything down here in a while. Perhaps that’s one good thing to come out of this: Kirigiri, at least, will no longer be disappointed in him. 

Komaru springs into his mind once again, and he almost laughs. How had her toast gone? 

“To Makoto!” Komaru had shouted, cheeks shining and smile wide. “May he bring us prosperity while he is with us! And may he fill our cups and plates and remind us of how grateful we are to have each other!” She had spun around and laughed. “Here’s to the best summer ever! To new beginnings! To fresh starts and promises and—” Komaru had stopped, and her gaze had fallen on another girl: the one Makoto now knew as Touko. Komaru had then run up to her and thrown her arm around her. “—And to a future with you,” she had finished, and Touko had turned red but leaned into Komaru anyways. 

“Are you engaged?” Makoto had asked. 

“She’s the best thing in my life,” Komaru had answered, honesty and love pouring from her face. 

“Komaru,” Touko had hissed, and Makoto had laughed. His attention was then drawn elsewhere as other clamored for his attention, for his blessings, to bless him. Later, Kirigiri had found him (rescued him, more like) and told him about them, specifically Komaru. 

Komaru. Funny how Makoto couldn’t seen to shake off the memories of her. 

He closes his eyes and listens to the mines. The noisy hum of the engines, the cheerful chanting of the workers, the roar of the fire. 

And then, just above the noise of it all, he hears it—the gentle warmth of a soft melody, one full of loss and despair, but most importantly, love. 

He jumps to his feet. It’s Komaru. She’s singing. But this time, she sings of lost love and despair. 

She’s talented, Makoto realizes, letting her voice wash over him. More than that. She’s been blessed. 

No wonder Kirigiri was so fond of her. 

Makoto listens to her song. He lets it fill him with strength, but most importantly, hope. Around him, the workers, too, stop and take note of Komaru’s singing. They can hear her, he realizes. 

They’re listening to her. They’d lost bits of themselves in the mines, and now…Komaru is giving it back to them. 

Kirigiri believed in Komaru. She had complete faith in Komaru’s song, when Makoto had talked to her. 

Makoto thinks that he believes in Komaru’s song too. 

Resolve fills him once more, and he straightens himself, dusts off his clothes, and marches back to Togami’s office (he might not be 100% sure where he is, but if he keeps going, he’s bound to find Togami soon). He pays no mind to the workers this time; after all, he is a man on a mission. He knows what he has to do. 

He is going to give Komaru a chance to save Touko. It’s what she deserves, after all. She didn’t come down here to get rejected before she could even speak. 

As he cuts through the mines, Komaru’s voice rises, growing stronger and sadder and still, somehow, hopeful. Makoto smiles to himself. She really is amazing. 

“If it's true what they say, I’ll be on my way. But who are they to say what the truth is anyway? 'Cause the ones who tell the lies are the solemnest to swear; and the ones who load the dice always say the toss is fair,” Komaru sings, and Makoto lets her words spur him on, filling him with strength and hope he had forgotten. All too soon, the familiar silhouette of the train station and Togami’s office creep up before him, and Makoto beams. He found it. 

Now comes the hard part. 

“Hold on, Komaru,” he whispers to the mines. “I’m going to give you that chance you deserve.” 

He stops outside Togami’s door and catches his breath. He brushes off his clothes once more and straightens himself up, psyching himself up to enter.

He can do this. 

This time, he knows exactly what he needs to say. 

This time, Togami will listen to him. 

Because this time, Makoto is going to make Togami pay attention to him. His husband can't keep shutting him out. 

“I believe if there is still a will, then there is still a way,” Komaru sings, and Makoto sends his thanks to her once more, along with a silent promise to help her. 

Because Makoto has a will. So he grabs onto that hope and pushes open the door to his husband’s office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Makoto @Togami: square up bitch 
> 
> AHHHHH MAKOTO IS FINALLY GONNA DO SOMETHING! IM SORRY THAT HE SPENT MOST OF THE EARLIER CHAPTERS BEING SAD BUT HE'S DETERMINED NOW! 
> 
> if you couldn't tell, i really liked writing this chapter, what with Makoto finally finding the energy and strength to do something and all. i'm proud of him 
> 
> also, this fic now has art! the lovely ShadowWolfSky01 drew Orpheus!Komaru, which you can find [here](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/689334663172718670/716050527489884238/unknown.png)! 
> 
> thank you for reading this far! feel free to leave a comment or a kudos! 
> 
> and take care of yourselves out there, i know that there's a lot going on in the world rn. be careful and stay safe


	12. Epic III (Togami)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Togami finally has to listen.

Togami scowls at the papers scattered across his desk. He cannot believe the audacity of that girl—Komaru, was it?—for coming down to the mines to demand that he free that other girl, Touko. Why should he? He owns her. Touko is his, now, and no amount of pleading is going to save her. There are rules here: no one leaves the mines. Once they’re in, they’re in. There’s no going back.

Komaru is an imbecile. Togami picks up a stack and begins leafing through it, but he cannot stop thinking about how boldly Komaru had declared that she was taking Touko home. Foolish girl. Doesn’t she know what she has done? All of Togami’s control could be overthrown because of her actions. The order that he established in the mines could break. And then where would they all be? Where would the mines be?

Where would he be?

And Makoto!

Makoto who had come up from nowhere and claimed to _know_ Komaru.

Togami had not been expecting that, either. His husband, who spent more time drunk and high when he was in the mines, had come running up without the sour stench of alcohol on his breath and surprisingly clear eyes and said that he knew Komaru.

Makoto. Togami closes his eyes and drops down into his chair.

Where did they go wrong? Try as he might, Togami cannot pinpoint one moment where everything began to crumble around them. It feels as if they got together, were happy, and then slowly but surely began to…lose sight of each other, perhaps. Drifted apart. Began spending more and more time apart, no matter how long Makoto spent in the mines as opposed to above them.

How long has it been since he and Makoto just held each other?

A scoff rises from his throat. This line of thinking will get him nowhere. For years, his relationship with Makoto had slowly deteriorated, and by the time Togami had noticed, there was nothing to left to salvage. Whatever he and Makoto once had, it’s over now; that much Togami knows.

He forces himself to rise and picks up some random papers. The mines are more important; Togami should be focusing on that instead of his failed relationship. He starts leafing through them, actually taking the time to read the words on the pages before sorting them into stacks. The familiar motions soothe him, and he wanders around his office, opening up the filing cabinets and making sure that each file is in its place.

Organizing his office, it turns out, is easier than he expected. It’s been a while since he last organized anything, and he think that he’s maybe a quarter of the way finished when the door is violently shoved open.

Togami can’t help the little gasp that escapes him as the papers drop from his hands. Makoto stands in the door, his figure cutting a stark figure in the light.

“Makoto,” Togami breathes. “What brings you here?”

Makoto takes in a breath, and Togami can do nothing but watches Makoto wordlessly takes a few steps towards him, even slamming the door behind him. It echoes loudly in the silence, and Togami hates that he flinches slightly from the noise.

“What are you so afraid of?” Makoto finally demands, pressing close to him, closer than he has willingly come in years. Togami looks at his husband, curious. Makoto’s eyes are clear; his breath is not sour with alcohol. His brows are furrowed and there’s a firm resolve to the outline of his mouth. Togami has to take a step back and recollect himself.

“What do you mean?” Togami asks. Why is Makoto in his office? What is he talking about?

When was the last time Makoto entered his office?

“She’s just a girl in love,” Makoto snaps, barreling on ahead as usual. “A girl madly in love with another girl.”

Togami stops. Makoto…Makoto is sober. He can’t recall the last time he saw a sober Makoto, actually willing to talk to him.

That’s what’s been throwing him off. Makoto is sober.

“Have a drink,” he says instead.

Makoto scoffs. “No, thank you. I’ve had enough,” he replies, and Togami blinks in shock. Makoto is full of surprises today, it seems. “Togami, Komaru loves her.”

“That girl means nothing to me,” Togami tells him truthfully. Fukawa Touko is just another mine worker. Makoto is his husband.

“I know,” Makoto says, and his eyes soften slightly as he stares into Togami’s eyes.

Makoto who is sober, Makoto who is not glaring at him, Makoto who is just…talking to him.

They’re still fighting. This isn’t them making up.

But it’s different so many of their other fights.

Togami wonders when they lost their ability to communicate. He wonders when he stopped trying to reach Makoto.

He wonders why it took him so long to realize that Makoto had slipped from his grasp, in spite of his efforts to prevent him from leaving.

“But she means everything to her,” Makoto finishes, and his eyes harden with resolve.

“So?” Togami asks, but he knows where this is going. Makoto is fighting for something, and Togami has no choice but to hear him out. He is helpless against the current that is a determined Makoto.

“Let her go,” Makoto pleads. “If you heard how Komaru had sang tonight, you would pity her too. All of her sorrow can’t fit in her chest. It just burns like a fire in pit of her chest, and her heart is just a bird on a spit in her chest. How long are you going to keep this up?”

Togami scoffs. He cannot let one girl free just because Makoto pities her lover. “How long? Just as long as I am king. Nothing comes from the songs people sing, however sorry they are. Give them a piece; they’ll take it all. Show them a crack, and they’ll tear down the wall.” He turns his attention to the papers scattered over the desk. He can’t believe that he dropped them, making even more mess for him to organize. Slowly, he grabs a stack and begins looking at them, just so he can avoid the fierce heat of Makoto’s gaze.

“Lend them an ear, and the kingdom will fall for a song,” he finishes.

Makoto shoves his way back into Togami’s vision, and Togami grunts as the papers crumple under his hands.

“What does she care for the logic of kings?” Makoto demands. “For the laws of your underworld? It is only for love that she sings, the love of a girl. It is a love that we once had, Togami.”

Togami scowls. Makoto and his soft, soft heart, a heart that Togami had fallen into once, so long ago. Makoto who had willingly opened his heart to him, the king of the mines, Makoto who walked in the sun had given him a chance and come down here, into the darkness. Makoto who had reviled the mines, who had fled to the surface every six months, Makoto who…

Makoto who had chosen him, and Togami had chosen him in return.

“Your pity does not fit in my bed,” Togami says, finally, but he is weak against Makoto (he always has been). “You just burn like a fire in the pit of my bed, and I turn like a bird on a spit.” He cannot stop looking at Makoto, Makoto who is looking at him, Makoto who is sober for once and Togami finds that he has forgotten just how beautiful Makoto looks. “How long?” He asks Makoto, turning the question back to him.

Makoto smiles before quietly straightening Togami’s tie. “How long?” He repeats, his hands gentle against Togami’s chest. “Just as long as I am your husband. It’s true that the earth must die, but then the earth comes back to life, and the sun must go on rising.”

It has been so long since Makoto had touched him so gently. Togami clasps Makoto’s hands in his, pressing them to his chest.

“I have duties above the mines, you know,” Makoto says softly. “But that doesn’t mean that I won’t come back.”

It’s as if Makoto took the years and years of fighting and separation right out of Togami’s chest. Something burns in his heart, and it’s not just the feeling of Makoto’s hands.

Togami takes in Makoto’s green eyes, the soft curve of his mouth, the paleness to his husband’s cheeks. A face that never once wasn’t the center of Togami’s world looks back. 

He cannot deny Makoto anything. Not like this.

Not when it’s been so long since they’ve had a conversation. 

“Fine. I’ll hear her out,” Togami concedes, and Makoto’s gentle smile blossoms from the full force of his happiness.

Togami has always been weak for Makoto.

He pulls away, Makoto following him, and he walks outside.

Chaos greets him. He can hear Komaru singing about hope above the regular noise of the mines. But even worse, he hears his workers singing along with Komaru.

“Why do we build the wall, and call it freedom?” Some of them call, and others shout back, “Keep your head low.”

“Why do we turn our back when our brother is bleeding?” They sing, and Komaru is leading them in harmony.

“If it’s true what they say,” she sings, and her voice practically soars over everyone else’s.

Togami feels his eyebrow twitch. She’s ruined his empire. Her foolishness could cost him everything.

All because she was a girl in love.

He turns to Makoto, who has covered his mouth with his hands. 

“This is not worth it,” he hisses, and Makoto just smiles a strange kind of half smile at him.

Fine. He’ll take care of the problem, and he’ll take care of it now. Even if Makoto hadn’t interceded on Komaru’s behalf, he would have eventually had to answer to the girl’s determination.

He wants to smack her. Doesn’t she know what she has done?

Togami storms along, people falling silent as he stalks past. The workers keep parting until he finds Komaru. She’s incredibly easy to track down—wandering sadly, head hanging low, a lyre in her hands. Her nose and eyes are red from tears, but even so, she’s the one who’s started a revolution. Pitiful looks mean nothing when the soul underneath can bring an entire mine to a halt. 

“Young lady,” he booms, delighting in how her head jerks up and her hands still over the lyre. “I have to hand it to you. You don’t scare easily, do you? You’re persistent, aren’t you?”

Komaru’s eyes widen and her mouth drops open. “What?”

“You’re lucky my husband is fond of your song,” he spits at her. Not bothering to explain anything else, he grabs her arm and practically drags her along, all the way back to the main center of the mines—the train station and his office.

He shoves Komaru into the train station and drops her arm. Makoto offers Komaru a small wave, which doesn’t escape Togami’s notice. He shoots his husband a glare but Makoto pays him no mind.

“Well,” Togami says, leaning against the wall of the train station. “So, Komaru.” He practically spits her name out, and beside him, Makoto shakes his head. “Since my husband is such a fan, you have one chance. Sing your song to me. Sing me a song to make me laugh, to make me weep.” He glares at Komaru, and the girl flinches. “Make the king feel young again.”

Komaru raises her lyre. “Well…I…”

Togami raises his hand. “Or I’ll send you somewhere no one ever hears your song again.”

Komaru bites her lip, then nods. She looks around the station, then pulls up a barrel and sits down on it. She raises her lyre, and a hush fall over the mines as the workers lay down their hammers and turn to them.

It’s as if the entire mines are holding their breath.

Togami can feel the workers all looking at him. They’re watching him; waiting for his reaction to Komaru’s song.

He can’t say he blames them. This could be a chance for…something; he doesn’t know what. But it feels like something is going to change after this.

Nothing will ever be the same. Perhaps that's why Asahina and Ogami have been lurking, waiting, watching, curious to see the outcome of their predictions and threads that they wove so long ago.

In the silence, Fukawa Touko rushes forward, shoving past the workers to watch. She doesn’t climb onto the station, but hovers at the edge, just in front of the station.

“Komaru,” she says softly, and Komaru actually turns and looks at Touko. Touko offers a smile, and Komaru smiles back before turning away.

Komaru takes a deep breath, and raises her lyre once more. Her fingers strike a chord, and she opens her mouth, and begins to sing.

“King of shadows, king of shade,” she sings, and her voice, slow but steady, soars over the mines once more. “Togami was king of the underworld.”

“It’s about me.” The words are drawn from his mouth, unbidden. He couldn’t help it. 

No one’s written a song about him before.

“But he fell in love with a beautiful man, who walked up above, in his mother’s green field,” Komaru sings, turning her gaze to Makoto. “He fell in love with Makoto, who was gathering flowers in the light of the sun.” Her smile grows, her fingers move faster, and she turns to Togami. “And I know how it was because, you were like me.”

Like Komaru.

In love.

He, the king of the mines…had felt the same way Komaru did, once upon a time.

“You were in love, with a boy, singing la, la la la, la la la,” Komaru sings, her smile still gentle and full of love.

Togami starts as the familiar melody slices into his heart. “Where did you get that melody?”

“Let her finish, Togami,” Makoto says, placing his hand on Togami’s shoulder.

Komaru’s fingers move faster over the lyre as she carries on. “You didn’t know how, and you didn’t know why, but you knew that you wanted to take him home. You saw him alone there, against the sky. It was like he was someone you had always known. And when you held him, it was like you held the whole world in your hands.” Her voice is stronger now, and there’s no traces of the nervousness that she had the beginning. Togami knows that she’s not just thinking of him and Makoto; she’s thinking of Touko, the girl who she came down to the mines for.

“And there were no words for the way that you felt,” Komaru sings, and Togami thinks about the way Touko had looked at Komaru when he had first confronted them. Komaru knows this love, the love Togami once had for Makoto. It’s because she feels the same for Touko.

“So you opened your mouth and you started to sing,” Komaru continues. “La, la la la, la la la.”

That melody. Togami feels his heart race, in a way it hasn’t in years.

Behind her, Asahina and Ogami appear, flickering into existence in that way they always have, but they join in Komaru’s singing.

“La, la la la, la la la,” the three of them sing, Komaru leading them. Below, the workers open their mouths to join in, adding their voices to the overwhelming melody.

Togami can’t believe he forgot.

Komaru cuts off the workers with a gentle wave of her hand, and plays one more chord.

“But what has become of the heart of that man, now that that man is king?” Komaru sings, with nothing but the lingering notes from the last chord to support her. She looks at Togami, her smile smaller and sad. “What has become of the heart of that man, now that he has everything?” Her voice breaks a little on everything, and Togami feels tears springing in his eyes. He blinks back the tears. He can’t show weakness. Komaru’s song is beautiful, but he cannot break down in front of his workers.

“The more he has, the more he holds, the greater the weight of the world on his shoulders,” Komaru sings. “See how he labors beneath that load, afraid to look up, and afraid to let go.” Her fingers move faster now, building it up. “But what he doesn’t know is that what he’s defending…is already gone,” she finishes, her smile all but vanished now, and her eyes shine with unshed tears.

He hadn’t even noticed that Makoto was slipping from him until it was too late.

“Where is the treasure inside of your chest? Where is your pleasure? Where is your youth?” Komaru asks, her voice hauntingly sad, as if she’s asking him directly. What happened, her eyes plead. Where did you go wrong, Togami hears.

Where did he go wrong?

“Where is the man with his arms outstretched…to the man he loves? With nothing to lose,” Komaru sings. There’s a delicate pause, and the mines hold their breath. Komaru smiles, then finishes with, “…singing la, la la la la la.”

She looks at Togami, a silent plea, and Togami knows what she wants.

He opens his mouth.

“La, la la la la la,” he answers, the melody strange and low in his throat, foreign on his tongue. It’s been forever since he sang it.

Komaru beams, and she sings it back.

Togami feels Makoto’s hand on his arm, and he looks down at him. Makoto’s eyes are unbearably soft.

“La, la la la, la la laaaa,” Makoto sings, and Togami joins in. 

He can’t believe he forgot.

Makoto smiles up at him, and Togami…

Togami smiles back. Not his fake smile, reserved for his workers, but the soft, real one that he almost forgot how to make.

Love.

For him, that’s Makoto. It always has been, and it always will be. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im so sorry this took so long but if it helps,,,the chapter,,,is way longer than like every other chapter. i think it's almost 3000 words. i thought about splitting it, but i liked it as one so here we are 
> 
> i'm including a link to Epic III because i personally think it's beautiful. you can listen to it [ here ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8c05EMeY2E8) and yes, i stole like all of komaru's lines for her song from that song oops. we been knew tho, i've been using the show lyrics too much 
> 
> this is such a good part though?? i liked writing from togami's pov and i liked all the emotions that he's got going on. since we haven't heard from him as much, i felt it was important to keep digging into that and that's why this chapter got so long *sweats nervously* and why it took forever to write *nervous sweating intensifies* 
> 
> anyways, thanks for reading!


	13. Promises (Makoto)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Makoto talks to his husband, among others.

Komaru opens her mouth, and sings, “King of Shadows, king of shade,” with the slightest tremor in her voice, and Makoto knows that she’s nervous.

He tries to offer her a reassuring smile, but deep down, he knows that it doesn’t matter.

His job is done. After all, he had come here with the intention of giving Komaru that chance she needed to free Touko. It’s all up to Komaru now. Her song will determine their fate.

“You were in love,” Komaru sings, her voice stronger now. “With a boy, singing la, la la la, la la la.”

It feels like a knife in his heart when Togami gasps next to him.

“Where did you get that melody?” Togami asks, and Makoto places his hand on Togami’s shoulder.

“Let her finish, Togami,” he says softly, eyes glued on Komaru.

Makoto hadn’t forgotten that melody, but he hadn’t realized that Komaru knew it.

Komaru smiles. “You didn’t know how, and you didn’t know why, but you knew that you wanted to take him home,” she sings, and her voice grows stronger with each note. Makoto takes in a breath, and remembers the careful, curious yet somehow cruel stares Togami used to throw him when they first met.

They’d come so far from those days, and yet now it feels like they’re back where they started: Makoto stubborn and avoidant, Togami cruel and distant.

As Komaru sings, he watches the way her fingers dance over the strings. She’s more than talented; she’s blessed. He spares a glance up at Togami, and his husband is blinking back tears.

That’s the man he married. But more importantly, that’s the man he fell in love with.

Makoto slips his hand into Togami’s and squeezes gently.

Togami squeezes back. Makoto can’t help the smile that crosses his face.

“He’s grown so afraid that he’ll lose what he owns,” Komaru sings tenderly. “But what he doesn’t know is that what he’s defending is already gone.”

Makoto blinks. Could Komaru mean…him? Togami was afraid of losing him?

Oh, Togami.

Makoto thinks back to Togami’s words, telling him that the lights and the fires were all built for Makoto, created to show his love throughout the mines.

He thinks he finally understands, now.

“Where is the treasure inside of your chest? Where is your pleasure? Where is your youth?” Komaru asks, her smile gone and her eyes sad. Each chord she strikes is sadder, somehow, than the last. “Where is the man with his arms outstretched…to the man he loves? With nothing to lose.” She shakes her head, then finishes. “Singing la, la la la la la.”

Makoto looks at Togami, who opens his mouth, and sings it back to her.

“La la la la, la la,” Togami answers, his voice low, and Makoto feels the tiniest chill race down his spine.

He hasn’t head that melody from Togami in forever.

It’s just as lovely as it sounds in Makoto’s memories.

Komaru smiles. “La, la la la, la la laaaaa,” she responds.

Makoto looks at Togami, and nods slightly. “La, la la la, la la la,” he sings, and Togami joins in, singing it along with him, just as they used to.

He smiles.

And Togami…

Makoto’s heart swells when Togami smiles back.

There’s enough time for Makoto to trace the sharp cut of Togami’s jaw with his eyes and enough time for him to take in the bright blue of Togami’s eyes and enough time for him to admire the subtle way Togami’s lips quirk up when he’s smiling.

It’s been ages since they last…just…stared at each other like this, too.

Then Togami’s face falls, and he mutters, “Shit,” under his breath.

Makoto blinks. “What is it?” He whispers, but Togami is scowling and looking away, rubbing the space between his eyebrows. Makoto sighs and looks around, and his gaze lands Asahina and Ogami, both of whom are smiling sadly.

He knew that something was going to happen, and judging from their expressions, that something has. 

Then Fukawa Touko breaks free from her spot in the front and rushes onto the platform.

“Komaru,” she exclaims, her voice shaking with love and warmth. “You—you finished it.”

Komaru catches her and spins her around. “Yes,” Komaru breathes out. “I did.”

Touko kisses her. “You were amazing,” she says, pulling away just enough to look at Komaru. “So, so amazing.”

“What do I do now?” Komaru asks, tentatively.

They’re so sweet. They really do love each other in the same way that he, too, had once loved Togami. Makoto wonders if it would be weird if he congratulated them.

“Take me home,” Touko replies, and her voice is still shaking with that same love and warmth. Makoto watches as Touko cups her palms around Komaru’s cheeks. Never mind, then. This moment is theirs. He won’t interrupt. “Let’s go. Let’s go right now.” 

“Okay,” Komaru says. “But—how?”

“We’ll walk,” Touko tells her, eyes brimming with happiness. “You know the way. You’ll lead us.”

“It’s a long road,” Komaru tells her, eyebrows furrowing. “It’s cold and dark, and—and—I don’t have anything for you. No food, or—a bed, or rings or—anything. I can’t promise you anything.”

“I don’t care about that,” Touko says. “Take me home.”

Makoto smiles and turns away from them. How sweet. He misses that. He used to have Togami like that, once upon a time.

Even so, it still feels like he’s intruding on something when he watches them.

Beside him, Togami is lost in thought. Makoto decides that he’ll ask him later. There must be something else he can do, then.

He looks around, and his eyes catch on a flash of lavender hair.

No way.

Without missing a beat, his feet carry him around the station, and he gasps when he sees the familiar lavender hair turned away from him.

He runs to her and tackles her.

“Kirigiri,” he exclaims, and Kirigiri gasps in surprise before turning to look at him.

“Makoto,” she says. “See what I meant? Komaru wanted to bring back spring. She finished her song.”

“Is that what she was doing?” Makoto asks. “How did she get that melody?”

Kirigiri shrugs. “I can’t say I know. She heard it in a dream, I suppose. You might say thatthe girl is touched.”

Makoto nods. “She’s amazing.”

“Isn’t she?” Kirigiri is no longer smiling, but Makoto doesn’t miss the way her eyes soften at the mention of Komaru.

“So did she succeed?” Makoto asks. “Do you think that everything’s going to be okay now?”

“Togami can’t let them go, and he can’t keep them,” Kirigiri remarks. “Look at his workers. If Touko goes, they’ll all be clamoring to leave. But she stays, she’ll be a martyr. Either way, Togami will have lost his control.”

Makoto looks out. The workers are calm, expectant. But none of them are working.

They, too, are rooting for Komaru and Touko.

“I see,” Makoto replies. “That’s…unfortunate.” He thinks of Togami’s words: give them a crack, and they’ll tear down the wall.

“Yes,” Kirigiri agrees. She looks at Komaru and Touko. “I only hope that they will be able to finish it.”

“Do you know what he’s going to do?” Makoto asks.

Kirigiri shakes her head. “But he has to do something.”

Makoto sighs. “Where’s Asahina and Ogami? They probably know something about it.”

“Lurking about, somewhere,” Kirigiri replies. “They’ll probably offer some advice to Togami.” She shakes her head again. “Well. We better join them, I suppose.”

Makoto nods, and they walk back up onto the train station. Kirigiri drops his hand and makes her way over to Komaru and Touko. She high-fives Komaru before slipping back down to join the workers.

Makoto walks to Togami, and touches his shoulder. 

Togami turns and looks at him.

“You want them to be freed,” Togami says thoughtfully.

Makoto says quietly, “I just wanted you to hear them out. To give Komaru a chance. She had to convince you.”

“Makoto,” Togami says, and Makoto loves the way Togami says his name.

“If you want to free them, it’s all because of her song, not because of how much I liked it,” Makoto continues. He touches Togami’s hand now, unsure of whether or not he can hold it.

Togami makes that decision for him: he links their fingers together, and holds tight.

“Whatever you decide, I’ll be by your side,” Makoto promises, and Togami nods.

“Her song really was beautiful,” Togami tells him. “Wasn’t it?”

Makoto smiles. “Then tell her that.”

Togami nods. He looks down at their interlaced fingers, before dropping their hands. And then he walks over to Komaru, who’s still holding onto Touko like she’s her lifeline.

“Thank you for sharing,” Togami says, and Makoto blinks. He hadn’t expected Togami to actually…praise Komaru, in any small capacity. “You weren’t bad.”

Makoto holds his breath.

“You may go,” Togami continues. Komaru gasps and Touko cheers, along with all the other mine workers.

Makoto smiles. Komaru did it.

“On one condition,” Togami snaps, holding up his hand, and a hush gathers over the mines once more. “You—” He points at Komaru. “You will lead. And you—” He points to Touko. “You will follow. You are not to walk out of here hand in hand, or side by side. Instead, you will walk behind her, and she will lead you out.”

Komaru nods.

“If you turn around to see if she is following you,” Togami says, “Then she stays with me…forever.”

“Forever?” Komaru whispers.

“Yes. Do you understand?” Togami demands.

“I understand,” Komaru says.

Togami smiles, but it is not the soft one he reserves for Makoto. It is cold and sinister, and Makoto is almost afraid. He wonders if they’ll make it.

He wants them to make it.

“See that you do,” Togami replies, and he turns around and makes his way back to Makoto.

Kirigiri appears next to Komaru, now, and looks at the couple. “Do you trust each other?” She asks. 

“Yes,” Touko says, and she squeezes Komaru’s hand.

“Yeah,” Komaru repeats.

"You'll need that," Kirigiri tells them. "Trust. Trust each other, then." 

Komaru turns to Togami. “Thank you,” she says softly, and then she grins.

“Go,” Togami says.

Touko presses a kiss to Komaru’s cheek. “I’ll follow you.”

Komaru nods, and starts off.

Makoto watches as they leave. 

“Do you think they’ll make it?” He asks, once they're too far away to be seen from the station.

“I don’t know,” Togami replies. “Asahina and Ogami will be watching over them.”

“You let them go,” Makoto says softly, and he smiles for what feels like the billionth time today. But he can’t help it: it feels like he and Togami are starting to fix this…thing…between them, and he’s so grateful.

Togami shakes his head. “I let them try.”

Now it’s Makoto’s turn to shake his head. But there’s more important things that they need to discuss, their relationship in particular. “And what about you and I?”

Togami frowns. “What do you mean?”

“Are—are we going to try again?” Makoto asks, hope flowing through him.

Togami regards him for a minute, not saying anything. Makoto burns under his gaze, but he looks back at Togami, relishing in the way Togami looks at him, really truly looks at him, in a way he hasn’t in so long.

“It’s time for spring,” Togami says quietly. “We’ll try again next fall.”

Makoto feels the smile stretch across his face, and he throws his arms around Togami and nearly cries. Togami runs his fingers through his hair, and Makoto sniffs. He really had missed him.

He steps back, smiling, but his eyes are wet. “Wait for me?”

Togami caresses his face, wiping his thumb at the unruly tears leaking out of Makoto’s eyes. “I will.”

Makoto’s heart melts at the kindness on Togami’s face. It truly had been too long since he had felt it. 

He can’t help it: he presses a gentle kiss on the corner of Togami’s mouth, and when he pulls away, Togami is smiling back at him, that soft soft smile he hadn’t see in ages. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY this chapter wasn't like. strictly necessary. it wasn't even planned. but i really really wanted to get that very last scene from this chapter into the fic (i mean it's such a good moment like "r we gonna try again?" "it's almost spring" I JUST,,,UGHHHH ITS SO GOOD) and it didn't fit in what is the penultimate chapter so here we are bc i decided the solution was to just write another chapter. im so sorry if this one feels like it's all over the place but that's because i was trying to fit in the first scene and the last scene and make them feel coherent and ughhhh yeah anyways 
> 
> thanks for reading hehe, i appreciate it :)


	14. Doubt Comes In (Komaru)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Komaru sings her song, and then...now what? What comes next, she wonders. 
> 
> What can she possibly do now?

Togami wanted to hear her song.

Her song.

Komaru may not have written the song out entirely, but now, here in the mines, she knows exactly what to sing.

“What has become, of the heart of that man, now that he has everything?” Komaru asks, strumming her lyre, looking directly at Togami. “The more he has, the more he holds, the greater the weight of the world on his shoulders. See how he labors beneath that load, afraid to look up, and afraid to let go.” She takes another breath, and thinks about the small gasp and the way Togami had muttered, “It’s about me.” When was the last time anyone had spoken to him like this? When was the last time someone had sang a song for him?

“So he keeps his head low, he keeps his back bending, he’s grown so afraid that he’ll lose what he owns. But what he doesn’t know is that what he’s defending is already gone.” Komaru smiles sadly at that bit. She can feel tears gathering in her eyes.

“Where is the treasure, inside of your chest?” She asks, looking at Togami, who looks right back at her, his face impassive. “Where is your pleasure, where is your youth? Where is the man, with his arms outstretched, to the man he loves, with nothing to lose.” She takes one last breath, and sings it once more. “Singing la, la la la, la la la.” Then she nods gently at Togami, urging him to sing it back to her.

Please sing it back, she thinks.

Something flashes across his face, and then Togami opens his mouth. “La, la la la, la la la.” The low and raspy notes send chills racing down Komaru’s spine.

That was how the melody was meant to be sang, she thinks.

“La, la la la, la la la,” Komaru sings back, a smile growing on her face, and she nods once more at Togami, telling him to sing again.

“La la la la la la la,” Togami and Komaru sing together, but this time, Makoto opens his mouth, and sings along. His voice is higher and lighter than Togami’s low voice. Listening to the way their voices compliment each other, Komaru realizes that maybe, this is how spring is brought back to the world.

She did it.

Her hands are shaking as she puts the lyre down, the silence in the wake of her song overwhelming.

Togami had sang the melody to her.

What’s more, Makoto had joined in.

Her song had meant something to them.

She can’t believe it. Her unfinished song, the one that had distracted her so, had meant something to Togami. She had to make it up on the fly, using the pieces she had liked best and inventing things based on her experience in the mines, and it had worked. It had worked.

She finished it.

She actually finished it.

Everything she’d been working for; her life’s work…all of it, she’d finally finished it.

Now what?

What does she do now?

“Komaru!” Touko cries out, and she crashes into her. Komaru lifts her up and spins her around, so relieved to see her again. 

“You finished it,” Touko breathes out.

“Yes,” Komaru says, taking in Touko’s wide grin and flushed cheeks. Touko looks beautiful like this, and Komaru thinks she could be happy here with Touko. But.

“Now what do I do?” She asks, nervous, afraid. Now what?

Now what does she do? 

“Take me home with you,” Touko replies, and her voice is so soft, so warm, that Komaru wants to cry. “Let’s go. Let’s go right now.” She squeezes Komaru’s hands.

“Okay,” Komaru says. “But—” The protest dies on her lips. She’s not sure that she knows what to say. So she settles on “How?”

“We’ll walk,” Touko tells her, eyes brimming with happiness. She hasn’t stopped smiling. Komaru wants to keep it there, forever, even if it means leaving Touko because she can’t give what Touko wants. But Touko is real, and she’s standing right in front of her. “You know the way. You’ll lead us.”

“It’s a long road, a long walk,” Komaru tells her, eyebrows furrowing. There’s no way Touko would want to go back to that cold, desolate place. Or that Touko would leave the stability of the mines for the instability of the world up top. Why would Touko go with her? “It’s cold and dark, and—and—I don’t have anything for you. No food, or—a bed, or rings or—anything. I can’t promise you anything. Are you sure you want to go?” Are you sure you want me, she asks, unspoken. Are you sure this is where you want to go.

Do you know what you’re resigning yourself to, she thinks.

“I don’t care,” Touko insists, still holding her hands, still smiling, still looking at her like she hung the moon and the stars. It’s overwhelming. “Take me home,” Touko says, and her voice is so soft, and hopeful, and loving, and Komaru blinks. 

“But,” Komaru starts. “I can’t even promise you clear skies, or a kind road below.” She can’t offer Touko anything.

She has nothing to offer.

Something softens on Touko’s face, and she reaches up to cup Komaru’s cheeks. “I’ll walk beside you,” Touko says softly. “Okay?”

Komaru blinks. “Okay,” she replies. Then, another thought occurs to her. “But what about him?” She gestures at Togami.

“Look at him,” Touko says. Togami is pacing back and forth, rubbing his forehead. “He’ll let us go.”

And another thing…

“And what about them?” Komaru asks, gesturing at the workers. They’re all looking up at her, at Togami, expectant. Everyone wants to know what will happen next.

“We’ll show them the way,” Touko tells her. “If we can do it, so can they.” She hasn’t stopped smiling, and Komaru wonders if she can really keep that smile on her face.

“Promise?” Komaru asks, and she kind of hates how small her voice sounds.

“Komaru,” Touko says. “Just walk beside me, anyway the wind blows. Don’t promise me a fair sky, or a kind road. I’ll walk beside you.”

“Do you let me walk with you?” Komaru asks hesitantly.

“I do, I do, I do,” Touko repeats, and Komaru gives in and kisses her softly. It’s soft, chaste, but Touko hums appreciatively anyways.

Even after she pulls away, Touko remains horribly close to Komaru.

Komaru turns to Togami. “So…can we go?” She asks softly, and Togami holds up his hand.

It’s quiet, as Togami rubs his forehead, the area just between his eyebrows. He frowns at them, but he doesn’t walk to them.

He scowls. Komaru frowns.

Touko squeezes her hand.

She can do this. “Can we go?” Komaru asks again, her voice louder this time, more confident.

This time, Togami stalks towards her, his gaze cold. Komaru subconsciously takes a step back. Touko squeezes her hand once more.

Togami looks at them. Komaru looks back. She cannot squirm. She cannot give in.

She put her heart and soul into that song, and it had meant something to him. This is not the time to be cowering.

“You may go,” Togami finally says. Komaru gasps and Touko cheers.

“On one condition,” Togami snaps, glaring at them. “You—” He points at Komaru, and Komaru finds herself standing straight to attention. “You will lead. And you—” He points to Touko, who scowls. “You will follow. You are not to walk out of here hand in hand, or side by side. Instead, you will walk behind her, and she will lead you out.”

Komaru nods.

“If you turn around to see if she is following you,” Togami says, “Then she stays with me…forever.”

“I understand,” Komaru says.

Togami smiles, but there is no warmth in it.

“See that you do,” Togami replies, and he turns around and makes his way back to Makoto.

Kirigiri appears next to Komaru. “Do you trust each other?” She asks.

“Yes,” Touko says, and she squeezes Komaru’s hand.

“Yeah,” Komaru repeats.

Kirigiri looks at her for a moment, then nods. “Then…you are free to go,” she tells them, and her face softens into a smile. “Good luck.” She turns away, tossing her lavender hair over her shoulder as she does. 

“Kirigiri!” Komaru blurts out.

“Yes?” Kirigiri turns to her.

Komaru takes a breath. “It’s not a trick?” She asks softly.

Kirigiri shakes her head. “It’s a test.”

Komaru nods, then quietly turns to Togami. “Thank you,” she says softly, and then she turns to the path to leave the mines.

Touko presses a kiss to Komaru’s cheek. “I’ll follow.”

Komaru smiles, then she steps off the train station platform and begins to walk.

She does not look back.

She walked this road once, and she can walk this road once more. As she passes through, the workers part, smiling and wishing her luck.

“Show the way,” they chant, as she passes through. Komaru keeps smiling, but deep down, she is worried.

What did Asahina and Ogami tell her earlier? Right. This is pointless. There’s no point. Who is she to think she can defy fate? She’s a mere poet. Directionless, too, now that she’s finished her song.

But Touko is behind her.

At least, she should be.

Would Togami lie to her?

Why wouldn’t he?

Kirigiri said it wasn’t a trick. Komaru shakes her head. It’s not a trap. It’s a test.

But…why wouldn’t Togami lie to her?

And why would Touko follow her?

Komaru shakes her head again and forces herself to keep going. It’s much easier to leave, she reminds herself. As she passes the wall, she waves at the guard who had let her in, and he shoots her a thumbs-up in response.

It’s kind of soothing, seeing him once more. How different this situation is, she thinks to herself.

“Good luck!” He calls down to her, and Komaru smiles and walks through.

She left the mines. And presumably, so had Touko.

Had Touko?

There’s no time for her to be thinking about these types of things. She focuses on the desolate landscape before her. She just has to get back to the train station. The one where all of this started, so long ago. She knows the way.

The wind blows bitter and harsh, and Komaru zips up her jacket.

“La, la la la, la la laaa,” she sings softly, just as she had when she was coming in. But this time, it does not bring her comfort. No, the melody from her finished song does not soothe the jagged nerves inside of her.

She had been so focused on her song that she had failed to care for Touko. Touko had slipped away because she was hungry, because she was cold. She didn’t want to be in poverty; she had wanted stability, the knowledge of where her next meal would come from, a bed to sleep in and rings and all the things that come with marriage. And Komaru hadn’t even been able to provide it.

No, Komaru is a poet, and now that she finished her song, she doesn’t have anything going for her. She cannot offer Touko anything.

Why would Togami let Touko go like that? Togami, who had taken Touko from her. Togami, who ran the mines and didn’t even let Makoto go to the surface. And why would Touko follow her anyways? Touko, who had walked away from her once, for stability and food and warmth. Komaru can’t provide anything for Touko.

She can’t.

Is Touko actually behind her?

She shoves her hands in her pockets. It’s fine. Touko is following her. She has to be.

Right?

Right?

Touko said to take her home, so she would have gone. She had to have gone.

Unless Togami didn’t let her? He’d been adamant that Touko stay, after all.

Komaru bites her lip. She has to keep going.

“La, la la la, la la laaa,” she whispers, and the only response is the wind.

She doesn’t look behind her.

She shouldn’t look behind her.

But why would Touko follow her? Why would Togami let her go?

Why?

The wind blows harshly, and Komaru looks at the grey skies. It’s so cold, and so dark up here. Once they’re reached the station, the stillness of the land between the underworld and the earth up top will be gone, and it will be colder there. 

Touko wouldn’t willingly go back to that. She had spent her whole life fighting against the cold and the wind and the dark.

The world is cruel, and it took Komaru too long to see that. 

Touko had known that the world was cruel, though. Touko had been searching for stability, for comfort, for warmth. That was why she had fallen into Togami’s promises.

Komaru already knows that she cannot provide those things for Touko.

Why would Touko follow her?

If Komaru is being honest, there is no reason for Touko to follow her back. All she can provide is herself, literally. Touko was the one who had gathered before. Komaru hadn’t done anything.

She still hasn’t.

At the end of the day, Komaru is a nobody. Her only good quality is her music, but now that she sang her song, there’s not even a point to her being able to sing. She can’t even promise to bring back spring.

She’s just…a nobody.

The station’s stark profile is shadowed amidst the grey backdrop of the in-between lands, and Komaru almost cries from relief. She’s almost there. Just a little bit longer, and she will have officially left the underworld.

And Togami will have regained complete control over his workers, including Touko.

Including Touko.

Komaru’s feet slow. Is Touko behind her?

How can Komaru trust her? Why would Touko leave? Why would Togami let her leave?

No. No. Komaru forces herself to take another step. She has to trust.

She has to…

The station is cold, and dark, and its silhouette is so far away. If Komaru reaches it without Touko, then she can never go back.

She has to go back. She has to get Touko. She has to save her, that’s what she came here for, and it doesn’t matter how long she has to fight for her because Touko is worth it. There’s no way Togami would have given her up like that.

Before she knows it, she’s spun around.

Her eyes take in the girl behind her. She’s beautiful, with wide brown eyes behind round glasses, and long brown hair that’s just curly enough to hang in loose waves. Her eyes are shining with love and hope, and the corners of her mouth are upturned in a tiny smile.

Touko’s just as lovely now as she was when Komaru first spotted her across the road, all those months ago.

And then Touko’s face crumples.

“It’s you,” Komaru whispers, her hands shaking as she reaches out to touch Touko’s face.

“It’s me,” Touko says, tears gathering in her eyes. She reaches out and grabs Komaru’s hands, squeezing tight, squeezing as if it’s the last thing she’ll ever do. It probably is, Komaru thinks, glancing down at their tangled fingers. “Komaru.”

Togami hadn’t lied.

Touko hadn’t abandoned her.

No, this time it was all her fault. There’s no denying it: she, and she alone, had…failed

Komaru feels her heart break as she whispers back, “Touko.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *wipes sweat off my forehead* oh thank goddess. i did it. that very last scene where komaru turns around is the entire fucking reason i wrote this fic. specifically when she and touko just say each other's names. 
> 
> ...i teared up while writing it haha
> 
> anyways!! sorry this chapter took me so long to write! i have a little epilogue of sorts planned out, and hopefully i can finish and upload that soon. i'll get all sappy and emotional there tbh, trying to save all the cheesy stuff for the last chapter hehe. but wow, this...the whole reason i started this fic...im kinda emo. 
> 
> pls drop a kudos or a comment if u enjoyed! the next and final (!!) update should be soon!


	15. Road to Hell (reprise)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> or, the aftermath

It’s a sad song, but we sing it even so.

Kirigiri slams her fist into the wall. She had warned them. 

Specifically, she had warned Komaru. Countless times. The fragile way Komaru had asked “It’s not a trick?” flashes in her mind, and she scowls. 

“It’s a test,” she had corrected. 

A test. A test, Komaru. 

She smashes her fist into the wall once more, relishing in the hurt and rage and disappointment that emanates from each punch. Stupid stupid Komaru, so absorbed in her song and restoring spring and finally, finally learning that the world was actually cruel and heartless. 

Kirigiri looks at the dust on her gloves. It doesn’t mean anything. 

After all, Komaru is mortal. She should have known better than to get attached. 

Her hands automatically pull the ends of her gloves over her wrist once more—as if they weren’t secured to her hands already. The action soothes her, and Kirigiri takes a few deep breaths, considering Komaru. Komaru, with her hopeful smiles and beautiful songs, had wormed her way into her heart, and Kirigiri couldn’t help but grow fond of her. She had rooted for her, had rooted for her to get her happy ending with Touko. 

Komaru was special. 

And now she was leaving. Kirigiri watches as Komaru gathers up her things, circling around the town one last time to whisper her good-byes to empty buildings. Komaru runs a hand down the train station’s wall; she smiles sadly at the spot in the road where she and Touko had first met. She pats the trees that surround the clearing where she and Touko had made camp so long ago. 

“Good-bye,” Komaru whispers. “It’s time I moved on.” 

Kirigiri doesn’t say anything. She lets Komaru leave, watches as Komaru melts into the shadows of the night. There is nothing she can say that will get the musician to stay; this much Kirigiri knows. 

Deep down, she cannot say that she blames Komaru for being so desperate to leave. 

There’s a presence beside her that she grows tired of ignoring, so she sighs before saying, “You can come out now.”

Ashina and Ogami materialize next to her. 

“I hate this part,” Asahina admits. “I was rooting for her too.” 

“She could have done it,” Ogami says softly. “We saw the ways it could turn out.” Asahina leans against her, and Kirigiri shakes her head. Those two were so sickeningly in love that it was almost disgusting. 

Much like Togami and Makoto had been, once. Much like Komaru and Touko still were, in spite of the distance separating them. 

“I wish she’d succeeded,” Asahina confesses. “It’s not fair.” 

“Fate rarely is,” Ogami replies. 

Kirigiri runs a hand through her hair, flicking it over her shoulder. “Will they meet again?” She asks. “Is it possible?” 

Asahina jolts upright, and Ogami just tilts her head. 

“It’s possible,” Ogami says after a moment of consideration. “The chances are slim. But she can’t wander forever.” 

“Everyone ends up in the mines at some point,” Asahina says. “Togami will claim what’s his, eventually.” 

“Of course he will.” Kirigiri doesn’t bother to hide the derision in her voice. She doesn’t like Togami, even if he is the king of the mines and the husband of her best friend. Togami is not to be trusted, she thinks. 

She will never understand what Makoto sees in him. At least she knows why Asahina and Ogami are good for each other. At least she can understand why they like each other. But the same cannot be said of Makoto and Togami. 

Makoto has terrible taste, she thinks. Knowing him, he probably also got attached to Komaru. 

What a fool. She cannot wait for him to return to the surface tomorrow. 

Makoto climbs off the train station with his suitcase full and head clear, and rejoices in the sun’s warmth. 

“Makoto,” Kirigiri greets him, pulling him into a fond embrace. “Six months, this time?” There’s a sharp edge to her voice that Makoto doesn’t like. 

“That’s what we agreed upon,” Makoto reassures her. He knows that Kirigiri doesn’t like Togami; she never has and it’s likely that she never will, but he had hoped that she would grow to accept him, at least. Still. After Makoto stopped being allowed out, there’s no way Kirigiri will ever forgive Togami. 

“I’m glad,” Kirigiri says. She looks at him, her purple eyes sharp and questioning, until a smile spreads on her face. 

She’s making sure that he’s sober, Makoto realizes. Of course she is. She always was worried about his addictions.

Makoto smiles back. It really is good to be up on the surface. 

“Oh, by the way,” he says suddenly, as the thought occurs to him. “Is Komaru here? I wanted to thank her.” 

Kirigiri sighs. “She left last night,” she informs him. “Right after Touko left for the mines again.” She hesitates, then adds, “I don’t think she liked the idea of being here without her.” 

“Oh.” Makoto closes his eyes and breathes in the air, feeling the stirrings of spring and life and warmth once more. “Then…I hope she’s safe, wherever she is.” 

“Yeah.” Kirigiri’s voice sounds slightly choked. “I hope she finds what she’s looking for.” 

What would Komaru be looking for? Makoto recalls the way her eyes shone whenever they landed on Touko, remembers the soft warmth on Komaru’s face whenever she saw Touko. 

It’s Touko, always Touko, for Komaru. Komaru may have been working on a song to bring back spring, but she had gone into the mines for Touko. She had sang that song for Touko. 

“She’s looking for Touko,” Makoto says. “Wherever she goes, she’ll always be looking for Touko.” He sighs, then adds, “Spring will never forget her. I’ll do my best to grant her soft winds and clear skies.” 

“I think she’d like that,” Kirigiri tells him. “So…you ready to bring order back to the world?” 

Makoto smiles. “Always,” he says. “It’s how it’s supposed to be.” 

Kirigiri leans against the tree. “Then get on with it, Spring.” Her voice is mocking, but there’s a soft smile playing at her lips and love in her eyes. 

“That’s not how spring works, and you know it,” he tells her. 

She laughs, a sharp thing that he hasn’t heard in years. “It’s good to have you back.” 

“It’s good to be back,” he replies. “Six months. I won’t leave any earlier.” 

“I’ll kick Togami’s ass if he tries,” Kirigiri vows, and Makoto internally sighs. 

He really, really wishes his best friend would at least accept his husband, instead of threatening to beat him up every time someone mentions his name. 

Oh well. He can’t say he blames her. So he just smiles, and focuses in on the barren trees, and wonders how to best to ease the world into healing. 

Down below, a girl studies her reflection in a small mirror tacked up on a rickety wall. Dirt streaks her cheeks and settles into the lines of her hands. She’s constantly wiping her glasses so she can see better. Her arms ache from swinging her hammer and her palms are starting to form hard callouses. 

She’s turning into someone she doesn’t recognize, she thinks, touching her reflection in the small mirror. 

Even so, Touko won’t forget who she is. Every day, she reminds herself of her name, of Komaru’s name. She carves Komaru’s name in the wet cement before smoothing it out. She wraps her arms around herself and pretends it’s Komaru who’s holding her. She hums melodies to herself, little things that Komaru had sang at night while she labored over her song. 

The mines had taken Komaru from her once, and they’d taken her from Komaru twice. She will not lose Komaru again. It would be unbearable to lose Komaru once more. Togami has already taken so much, and Touko will be damned if she lets Togami take the memory of Komaru too. 

As she stands there, staring at her reflection, she wonders if Komaru will even be allowed back in. After all, the mines…you aren’t supposed to leave. Komaru broke the rules, had dared to challenge Togami, had laid bare the flaws in Togami’s system. She had risked everything, just to save Touko. 

Touko loves Komaru. She really, really does.

Even if Komaru had ultimately failed, Touko refuses to forget that Komaru had tried. 

Touko picks up her hammer and runs her finger over the small carving in the wooden handle. It’s a messy sketch of Komaru’s face. Touko had carved it herself, wielding a sharp scrap of metal and a smooth stone for polishing. Her goal had been to memorize every curve of Komaru’s face before she forgot. It’s not a very good carving, but it reminds Touko of Komaru, and that was the whole point. 

She smiles sadly at the lopsided carving. This time, she cannot let herself forget. 

Whenever she works, she hears Komaru singing, even if Komaru isn’t there to sing to her anymore. Her memory lets the song wash over her until it is the only sound in her thoughts. It soothes her, to know that she has not forgotten the sound of Komaru’s voice. 

What wouldn’t she give to hear Komaru sing again. 

She hopes that Komaru is singing, wherever she may be. 

Before she starts working, she sends a silent prayer to whichever gods may be listening. Asahina and Ogami had always been there, in her memories, but Touko will ask any god to grant her prayers. 

“Please,” she begs. “Let me see her again. Let me hear her sing again.” 

She lets herself look in the mirror one last time, wondering if Komaru would still be able to recognize her like this. 

Enough useless thoughts. Touko turns away from the mirror, and walks outside, ready for another day of working on the wall. 

* * *

Those who sing in the dark of night…they’re the ones you remember. Perhaps that’s why no one ever forgot Komaru. 

Because she had reminded them all of how the world could be. 

They’re the ones we raise our cups to.

A woman walks into the train station. She isn’t much to look at, with plain clothing and a worn pack on her back. Her face is lined from the sun and the wind, framed by long green locks that hang to her waist. She looks around, taking in the wooden walls, almost as if she’s re-familiarizing herself with the place. 

Then she walks to the ticket desk, and rings the bell. 

Kirigiri looks up from her space behind the counter and gasps. 

“I’d like to buy a ticket,” the woman says, offering a smile. 

Kirigiri looks at her for a long moment, then flips through her register. Then she smiles. “You’re all clear,” she tells the woman, and rips off a ticket. “Right that way.” 

The woman smiles. “Thank you,” she says, and she climbs onto the train. 

She’s coming home, wherever that may be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> end. 
> 
> thank you so much for reading. no, really, i appreciate it.
> 
> this is the longest thing i've ever written, but i enjoyed writing it. hadestown and danganronpa are both special to me, and combining them was...honestly? probably one of the best ideas i've ever had. Orpheus!Komaru and Eurydice!Touko just made a lot of sense to me, and i knew that i had to write it, even if they don't get to be together in the end (although i like to think that orpheus made his way back to eurydice; and so, of course Komaru would be able to find Touko years later too ^_^). and Makoto and Togami were perfect as Persephone and Hades. Kirigiri gets to be Hermes, because she's awesome (and also bc I just really love Kirigiri). Please forgive me on the fates, i just enjoy sakuhina and couldn't resist adding them (i've decided that Maizono is the third fate, but she was off on other business during this story hehe). 
> 
> it's weird to think that this story will finally be complete. I first had this idea in late march, and it's now mid-july. i didn't think it would take me that long to finish this (fun fact: this ended up being like. 10K longer than i was expecting. it ran away from me). 
> 
> anyways, here we are. thank you so much for reading; i hope you enjoyed it~

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! I hope you liked it! 
> 
> chapter title is just the name of a corresponding hadestown song (that's how all the chapters will be labelled, although in general there should be more than one song in each chapter) 
> 
> like i said in the tags, this is very self-indulgent. so self-indulgent that i am borrowing dialogue from the song lyrics...they're just so pretty though :,) i really love hadestown 
> 
> i don't know how often i'll update, but i know where this going and what i want to have happen, so... it honestly shouldn't take too long between chapters but we'll see. 
> 
> please leave a comment or kudos if you enjoyed the start! i'd really appreciate it!


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